Powerless
by Jezek10
Summary: Young Princess Rosalie, daughter to Thor and Jane, grew up on tales of the God of Mischief. As a child, she discovers Loki is being held captive in her Palace's dungeon and begins visiting him in secret. Loki indulges Rose's curiosity and becomes quite enamored with the girl. Could she be the key to finally granting him freedom? Or does fate have something more in store? AU.
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note: I've lurked in the Thor fandom forever and a day, and, like many, I've caught the Loki bug. I'm still trying to figure out if this is worth continuing, so if you enjoy this story.. please leave a review and/or follow/favorite. It would be much appreciated!**_

_**Disclaimer: Don't own any of Marvel's characters. **_

"May I have a story, Father?" The young princess asked softly, peering up at her father through wide, crystal blue green eyes. Thor gazed down lovingly at his perfect daughter. Rosalie was his pride and joy with her spirited, adventurous soul so like his own, and her eager heart, so ready and willing to learn just like her mother, Jane. The strawberry blonde princess was every bit a perfect blend of her mother and father, and even as a toddler, so well-mannered and mature far beyond her years. The kingdom's beloved princess charmed all she met from her own smitten parents to the royal guards, royal servants, and every faithful and loyal subject in the land. Her intelligence, wit and exuberance ensnared all into the palm of her hand. She was truly a precious gem.

"Of course!" Thor replied loudly and enthusiastically, lifting his daughter effortlessly under her arms and playfully crashing her onto her massive bed. Rosalie shrieked in delight and giggled uncontrollably. Her laughter filled Thor's ears like the singing voices of a choir of angels. He would do anything for his child. Nothing would ever, could ever break their bond of father and daughter. Thor released a jovial, teasing growl and pretended to pounce Rosalie. She screamed and made futile attempts to block herself from his massive body toppling over her, but they never made contact. Thor was very careful to not crush Rose, but instead landed beside her, bouncing the mattress and in turn bouncing Rose upon her bed. Rosalie squealed when she felt her body flying in midair, but then landed on her bed with a small "oomph!"

Thor chortled for a few moments before regaining his composure, his gaze solidifying with affection. He stroked a gentle hand through his daughter's red tinted golden curls fanned out across the pillows of her large bed that engulfed her body in a padded, feathery haven. "What story would you like to hear, darling?"

Rosalie scrunched her nose adorably and chewed her bottom lip as she mentally mulled over the endless options of possible bed-time tales. As much as she loved learning new stories when her father or mother presented them, when given the choice, she almost always chose from those she'd already heard. Therefore, she settled on one of her favorite subjects, a subject her father strangely always seemed both pained as well as passionate about, which is why this subject had easily become one of Rosalie's favorite topics.

"Tell me a tale of the God of Mischief!" Rose blurted excitedly as Thor continued to stroke her hair soothingly. His expression contorted in discomfort very briefly before settling into a small, accepting smile.

Rose almost always chose the topic of the infamous Loki for her bedtime stories. Though it pained Thor to speak of his former brother's misdeeds, he also suspected that Rose loved these stories specifically because of how close Thor was to them. Many of Thor's stories about the "God of Mischief" included himself, and as trying as telling such stories could be, he loved the way Rose's eyes always lit up upon hearing them.

"Ahh, another tale of the infamous trickster?" Thor hid his discomfort well. Rose nodded enthusiastically.

So, Thor simply nodded with a large grin and began a familiar tale, allowing the memories to wash over him and take him back to a time that now seemed like a lifetime ago. Rose loved the way her father told stories. Unlike her mother, Rosalie's father told stories very animatedly, boisterously, and thrillingly. He left her clinging on to his every word and movement. Half of the time, Rosalie felt like she was actually in the battle or adventure her father was describing. The tale he told tonight was one that Rosalie hadn't heard in a long time: the first time Loki tried to take over the throne of Asgard when Thor had been banished to Midgard. The story held Rose's captivation well as her father explained every last detail. His passion, sorrow and indecisiveness was evident through the expressions that crossed his face. They were what kept the story alive in Rose's eyes.

"And then," Thor's enthusiasm dwindled and he seemed to visually deflate. "Loki did something that I will never understand."

"What did he do?" Rose's eyes widened and she clutched the edge of her sheets in anticipation.

Thor smiled sadly and he placed his rough, calloused hand over Rose's delicate, nimble hand. "He let go. He released his hold on the staff and fell."

"Where did he go?" Rose squeaked.

"Not even I know the answer to that, darling," Thor chuckled lightly.

"B-b-but..." Rosalie blubbered incoherently, unable to get her thoughts together. "Why did he let go? Wasn't he your brother?"

"Yes," Thor spoke carefully. "I considered him to be my brother, but he and I were of different parentage. Loki... Loki was born of Joutenheim and was taken in by our mother and father. They raised him and treated him as their own, as did I. In fact, I was unaware of his parentage until after he fell..."

A silence pursued between the pair. Neither was sure if they wanted to speak. So they wallowed in the silence, each of their thoughts concealed behind strangely identical scowls.

"Did..?" Rosalie stopped herself, fearing that her father no longer wished to speak of his brother.

"Go on," Thor encouraged with concern tugging at his eyebrows.

Rose sighed, but didn't hold her tongue. "Did you ever see him again?"

Thor smiled thinly, and tucked a stray lock of hair behind his daughter's ear. "I did," he confirmed, although there were subtle hints of remorse in his voice. Before Rose could open her mouth to prod her father for an elaboration, he interjected. "But that, love, is a story for another night. It's getting late, and I'm sure your mother wouldn't appreciate me keeping you up."

"Fine," Rosalie sighed wistfully in resignation and collapsed onto her mound of pillows. Thor grinned in satisfaction and proceeded to tuck her in, caressing her face as he watched her eyes begin to feel heavy.

"Every time I bring it up, mother always speaks of Loki's wrong doings," Rose yawned quietly, speaking only because she was succumbing to sleep. "Sif says he is evil. But... If he is evil, I don't think he always was. Evil isn't born, right father? Isn't it something that's made?" The princess peered up at her father with wide, hopeful eyes. Thor sighed as a pang for the man his former brother had once been rippled through his heart, and he smiled sweetly at that. Much like he had once believed, Rose always hoped that Loki was good and that perhaps one day, he could come to a revelation that he had slighted himself of a happy existence. That by willingly inflicting pain on others he was only hurting himself in the process.

"That is right, Rosalie. It is our choices that make us who we are, and sadly, Loki made many terrible choices, but no, darling. He was not always evil. He once was as good as you or I."

"I think I would have liked to meet him." The thought brought a small smile to the princess's lips. "When he was good," she corrected quickly.

"I think so too," Thor agreed. "I think you would have loved him." Thor felt his throat well up and close at hearing the pure love in his daughter's voice as she spoke of the Loki that now only Thor remembered so vividly. To everyone else, he was forever the trickster and man that had once attempted world domination as well as repeatedly tried to obtain the Asgardian crown in the most brutal of ways. Nothing more than a wicked title and a terrifying history. Rosalie, though, like her father, was a true optimist—a believer in the good of people, no matter how lost they might become.

"As you loved him?" Rose rasped, her voice growing weak and wispy with exhaustion.

"Yes, Rose. I loved him very much," Thor whispered back to his daughter, swallowing a tightness that had grown in his throat. Rosalie smiled and nodded, nestling further into her bed.

"I think he loved you, too, Father. Even after he did terrible things. I think he always loved you. Perhaps he still does." Thor's smile brightened at his daughter's words, and bent to gently kiss his beautiful child's forehead.

"Thank you, Rosalie," he said, always in awe of how mature and perceptive his young daughter could be. "Sleep now. It is late." He pressed another quick kiss to Rose's forehead before standing and crossing to the door. Just as he was about to exit, he heard his daughter's quiet voice whisper to him from her pile of blankets and pillows.

"He cannot come here, can he, Father? The God of Mischief?" Rose's voice did not tremble in fear, only echoing curiosity.

Thor paused. "No, love. He was captured long ago and can never escape. You are safe." Thor couldn't ignore the disappointed look that briefly crossed his daughter's face, but he thought nothing of it as he departed the room and pulled the door closed behind him, crossing the hall to enter his own bedchamber where his beloved, Jane Foster, lay waiting.

Rose lay awake only a moment longer, her last thoughts of Loki and where he might be, captured and held somewhere he could never escape. The young princess briefly wondered if the former Prince was lonely, if he was scared, ashamed or remorseful. If he could ever be good again like he once was.

What the princess didn't know, as her father never told her, was that the fallen Prince, Loki, was being held captive within their own castle. Within a specially crafted cell in the royal dungeons far below the Castle floor, beneath Rose's very feet, he had remained for the last ten years.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Author's Note: Thank you to those of you who have taken an interest in this story! The more you review the quicker I'll update! _**

_We are all prisoners but some of us are in cells with windows and some without_

Young Rose, much like her father, Thor, had an insatiable appetite for adventure. Her eager and curious mind made itself known in every aspect of the hours she spent cooped up within the castle walls. From her constant questions and commentary during lessons to her daily excursions around the castle grounds (accompanied by her father, of course) atop the back of her beloved horse, Genevieve, to her many ventures within the castle walls, having discovered and mastered the many secret passageways throughout her home, Rosalie was always alert and always on the move. Her curiosity had gotten her in trouble with her parents many times, having stirred panic in the Asgardian council on one too many occasions after disappearing through some secret tunnel and showing up late to dinner or tea. She was also known for her visits to the kitchens to speak with the servants, all of whom utterly adored her, though she had formed a bad habit of never telling her mother and father where she was disappearing to. She also had a peculiar knack for playing harmless practical jokes on anyone she came in contact with. Simple things such as switching the sugar and salt, rubbing butter or something of the like on door handles, and squeezing lemon juice into her father's water were all on the list. Although she didn't do it too often, everyone received the pranks with good nature. She was certainly no stranger to trouble, young Rose.

However, one rule that the princess had never broken was that of entering the forbidden corridor. The forbidden corridor was the stretch of hall in the West Wing of the palace that led to a painfully long stairwell down to the palace dungeons. Her mother had cautioned her many times that she must never enter the forbidden corridor. She must stay far away from the dungeons as they housed many criminals and evil creatures alike. It was a dangerous place for a child, especially with the evil sorcerer that resided there. Thor had told Rose long ago that they had captured an evil warlock, and that he was kept in the dungeons in a special cell that could protect the lands from his dark magic. Rose was never to venture down to the dungeons for fear that the evil sorcerer might find some way to bring harm to the precious princess and her family. Rosalie had always been curious about the warlock, though she was also equally fearful of the man she had never seen. No, she had never ventured into the forbidden corridor. Until today.

The little girl poked her head around the corner as she stepped cautiously into the West Wing, searching for the position of the two guards she knew stood constant vigil by the entrance to the forbidden corridor. One of her lessons that morning had been about sorcery and magic, and it had only rekindled her curiosity about the long-forgotten evil warlock her parents had warned her of for as long as she could remember. And though she still held great fear in her heart of the mysterious man being held captive, she also felt a burning intrigue that demanded she learn more. Thus, she snuck her way through the castle, utilizing the many secret passageways that had become her own personal means of travel throughout her home, and found her way to the West Wing.

There was only one guard standing watch by the entrance to the forbidden corridor today. The other had to be taking leave for meal, she guessed, as she pondered a way to distract the lone guard long enough to slip past him and into the corridor.

Unbeknownst to any, Rose had a dark secret. And while she always feared that one day her secret would be discovered, nothing had happened to hint at it thus far. All knew of Rose's devout dedication to reading any and every book held within the royal library. However, what she had kept under wraps from the time she was able to read was her fascination with magic. More specifically dark magic. Rosalie knew she was different from others at a very young age. This occurred to her one evening when she'd been startled by her mother appearing in her room to tell her goodnight, and Rose had thrown up her hands in surprise, accidentally freezing her mother in place for a few minutes. When Jane had ceased to remain in the same position, she continued speaking as if nothing had happened. This puzzled Rosalie greatly, and thereafter she read any and every book that hinted at the morbid subject of magic. She'd even asked her father about dark magic once, but he had quickly dismissed it as something to never speak of. He briefly explained that there was nothing particularly wrong with magic, only that it was generally frowned upon. Rose never mentioned it again. But that didn't stop her from practicing it. Of course, she'd never indulged in the truly repulsive spells. All she'd attempted were the simple, harmless enchantments. These included wiping the memories of the kitchen cooks when she'd swiped a few dessert cakes from the upcoming dinner trays, lighting small flames of fire to read by late at night when she was supposed to be asleep, and making herself transparent in order to sneak about the palace unseen. Rosalie worked at perfecting her craft, but never let anyone see her practicing the few spells she'd picked up on. Thus, explaining her desire to meet the dark sorcerer. Perhaps he could answer a few of her questions. Her dark secret was what was going to help her get by this guard.

Rose stepped back into the shadows of the passageway, glancing to the guard once more to make sure he hadn't seen her. Taking a deep breath, she then focused her energy into freezing the guard in place just long enough to slip past him. The remarkable thing about Rose's magic was that she didn't even have to try very hard. She just imagined what she wanted to happen, and most of the time the magic within her would respond accordingly. This time was no different. Rose breathed a sigh of relief when the guard froze in the middle of a yawn. She waited a few moments to be sure the spell held up, then grinned widely in satisfaction.

Rose quickly made her move, pulling up the fluffy skirt of her dress and scurrying silently around the corner and over to the entrance of the forbidden corridor. She paused momentarily to inspect the guard, then spared only a final glance behind her to the safety of the rest of the castle. With one deep, steadying breath, she slipped through the entrance, pulling the door quietly closed behind her.

The forbidden corridor was dark and eerily silent, lit only by the very faint flicker of slow-burning torches that decorated the stony walls few and far between. The small, curled hairs on the back of her neck stood, prickling and tickling her skin as an uneasy feeling settled in her small gut. Still, she pressed on. She was determined now that she had made it this far to see this adventure through to completion. At the end of the corridor, she stared down the long winding stairwell, wondering just how far below ground they would take her. She hesitated briefly before taking another deep breath and diving into the dark and daring descent.

By the time Rosalie reached the bottom of the stone stairs, she felt as if she had been walking for hours, and honestly, she had no idea of how long she actually had been. Surely it had not been as long as it seemed, or at least she hoped as much, as she knew her mother and father would be in fits of panic were she to have gone missing long enough to be noticed, especially if she returned late again to dinner. These thoughts inspired the young princess to hurry along, her hope of glimpsing the mysterious evil sorcerer supposedly trapped within the dungeon only blossoming further as she made her way hurriedly, though cautiously, through the dank and darkened dungeon.

A variety of cells lined the corridors of the dungeon, its prisoners encased in an opaque, glowing, gold barrier. Some sort of magical barrier. Many of the cells, carved jaggedly into the stone walls, were empty, though several contained people and creatures alike. Thankfully, most of them seemed to be sleeping or distractedly murmuring to themselves in a shadowed corner at the back of their cells; however, a few did rush forward to whisper or jeer at her, which made her nearly jump from her own skin, only pushing her to hurry along, running as far from their rotten smells and ragged voices as she could get. In fact, she was so unsettled by the leering prisoners that she promptly put an invisibility spell up as to not attract any more unwanted attention from the despicable creatures and men.

She continued along, searching for any sign of someone who looked the part of a sorcerer or warlock. She didn't know exactly what she was looking for. She supposed if she came across the warlock she would feel an overwhelming sense of magic or something odd in the air. She considered herself to have a keen sense of awareness and an intuitive nature. Unfortunately, no feeling of the sort ever surfaced.

One particular prisoner, though, did manage to capture her attention as she neared an end to the passage, which then veered sharply to the right. This prisoner seemed different than the rest. More composed, intelligent, and regal. Unlike all of the other inmates, this prisoner sat upon the floor, almost against the magical barrier keeping him within, and was idly flipping through the pages of an old, weathered book. Curious, Rose took a tentative step closer to the cell, careful not to make too sudden a movement as not to jar her magic, causing her disillusionment to withdraw.

Rosalie's heart began to race in her chest as she studied the man. He had a pale, chiseled face, dark hair that fell sloppily to shoulder length and sparkling green eyes that reflected the light within the dungeon. His mouth was drawn in to a slight frown, and he had a scowl upon his face as he flipped through the book, perplexed by something, as if searching for an unattainable answer within its pages. Rosalie found herself gawking at the man's beauty, wondering to herself what he had done in order to land himself in the high security palace dungeons. Rosalie bit her bottom lip and squinted her eyes while she stared, wanting to take a few steps closer to peer at what the man was reading.

Before she could draw further near, however, he opened his mouth and spoke in a deep, sultry voice, not even bothering to look up from his book.

"While I typically would encourage the curiosity of another, in this case I find you'd be terribly mistaken. It is no friend, but a dangerous foe."


	3. Chapter 3

_"While I typically would encourage the curiosity of another, in this case I find you'd be terribly mistaken. It is no friend, but a dangerous foe."_

Rosalie jumped back and gulped as the voice, though beautiful, sparked a deep fear within her. She took another step back, unsure of whether or not the man was even speaking to her. Surely he couldn't see her. She still had her invisibility shield up. Before she could contemplate her next move further, however, the man spoke again.

"There's no need to be shy," he mocked teasingly, his voice a silky, sweet purr.

Rose couldn't believe it. He knew she was there. "Y-y-you can see me?" she stuttered in shock.

The man furrowed his brows as Rose's small voice echoed throughout the corridor, and looked up slightly from his book, his own curiosity growing.

"No," he admitted with a deepening frown. "But I can sense your presence." He then looked to the direction that Rose stood in, and she could swear that he saw right through her facade. His eyes penetrated her own, causing her breath to catch in her throat. "Now why don't you put down that invisibility shield?" he encouraged with a sickening sweet smile that made Rose's stomach churn with butterflies.

Rose bit her supple bottom lip and hesitated only a moment before sighing and following the man's suggestion, lifting her arms and swiping them over their body to disarm the spell.

If the man was surprised at Rosalie's stature and size, he hid it well. A brief look of concern flashed across his features for the briefest of moments before returning to an indifferent gaze. Rose sheepishly avoided the man's stare, feeling his gaze upon her, boring into her. It was an unsettling feeling, and though the princess's instincts bid her to turn and run back to the safety of the castle above, she could not command her feet to move.

The man studied the curious girl as the child fidgeted uncomfortably. The young girl wore a petite, full-skirted emerald green dress that matched the piercing brightness of her blue-green, aqua forest eyes. Her reddish golden locks fell in beautiful curls around her shoulders, framing her doll-like face, and her small hands hung, clasped tightly together, before her petite frame. He noted the child's features, recognition blazing through his mind. Her parentage was certainly obvious, at least to this man.

The man's thoughts stirred as he studied the girl. Has such time truly passed, he thought, that the brother he had forcibly estranged had come to the point in his life in which he had found it necessary to breed? Time had become such a lost concept in the dungeons, unable to see the rising and setting of the sun and moon. The princess, though, was visible proof that it had indeed been many years since the man had last known freedom. She was a truly beautiful child, he noted dully, though what such a child was doing in such a despicable place was certainly an intriguing mystery, one that the man fully intended on unraveling.

"Ah, the princess," the man stated matter-of-factly, mirth decorating his voice. He was going to enjoy this. Thor, the achingly, annoyingly sweet reigning king, would be none too pleased to learn of his young princess's adventures to visit his greatest foe; or perhaps, the man mused, he would refrain from divulging such information to the King for now, carrying on as usual when Thor came for his weekly visit to ensure that his nemesis and brother was still very much helpless and confined within his magical prison. Perhaps, he could find some way to use this visit to his advantage. Yes, that would do perfectly.

"How did you know I was a princess?" Rose asked with widened eyes, her voice squeaking in surprise as she took a step forward.

"That chin and those eyes; I would recognize such features anywhere. You are most certainly the daughter of Thor Odinson," the man answered her, amused, though he failed to hide the sheer disgust and disdain with which he spat forth Thor's name.

"I am. My name is Rosalie. But those who know me call me Rose," Rosalie replied, curious as to why this man seemed to know her father well enough to recognize his facial features in her own young face. "And might I inquire who you are? Oh! Wait!" The girl's face lit up in realization. She felt stupid for not thinking of it sooner. "Are you... Are you the evil sorcerer?"

The man laughed loudly at that. Of course that oaf Thor would reduce him to nothing more than a distant memory, not even gracing his story with a name to tell the child. He was actually curious to hear more from the girl. Had her father told her stories of the sorcerer, and if he had, which stories had he chosen to disclose? Surely only those that would be sure to stir a deep fear within his daughter.

"I suppose I am," the sorcerer replied, as his laughter died to a slight chuckle before he grew silent once more, waiting to see if the child would leave or carry on their conversation. He could see the curiosity brewing in her bright, young eyes, reflecting beautifully in the torchlight. He did not have to wait long before the princess spoke again.

"I have never met a sorcerer before," the princess told him shyly.

"Consider it a blessing," the sorcerer replied. "As you stated, I am evil, after all."

The strawberry blonde tilted her head as she stared curiously at the beautiful, enticing man. "Are you really?" Rose asked.

"Really what?"

"Evil."

"What would give you reason to doubt that I am?" the sorcerer asked, sincerely intrigued by the girl's question. He hadn't been expecting as much. "Your father has no doubt informed you that I am, in fact, evil. Why should you question otherwise?"

"Because..." Rosalie hesitated, her eyes shining as she shied away from the sorcerer's gaze. "Because then that would make me evil."

The sorcerer couldn't believe his ears! What in god's name had led the girl to this conclusion? Then it donned on him like a ton of bricks.

"Because you have the capability to perform magic."

Rosalie nodded solemnly. "I only ever use magic for meaningless things. But what of it manifests into something greater?"

The sorcerer was about to speak, but Rose cut him off in a rush, consumed by her own thoughts.

"And father says magic isn't purely evil, but it is frowned upon. Ever since the God of Mischief it has been."

This peaked the sorcerer's interest. If only this child knew that her precious father was, in fact, a driving force in making this statement true. Oh, the naivety of youth..

"The God of Mischief?" he inquired innocently.

Rosalie's scowl of being deep in thought disappeared and a radiant smile resurfaced. "Loki!" she explained. "My father's younger brother."

"Yes, I know who he his," the sorcerer snapped impatiently. "But what of him?"

Rose frowned at the sorcerer's snappy tone, and pursed her lips, relaxing ever so slightly as she went into immense detail of what had been related to her from her father.

"His stories are my favorite," she started. "The God of Mischief was always causing chaos. He tried to take over Asgard a few times. He felt it was his birthright to be a king, but it wasn't meant to be. He did many terrible things; he even tried to rule Midgard, but nothing ever worked in his favor. But he wasn't always evil. He once was just as pure as any within the kingdom. It's just...something changed. Something dark overtook him." The girl paused to take a breath. "I always pitied him in a way. He was shunned for his magic from a very early age. But he and I share something in common."

"And what might that be?" the sorcerer prodded.

"We both have a knack for playing practical jokes," Rose shrugged as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "But the point is," Rosalie shook her head to clear her thoughts, realizing she was getting off topic. "He's the reason magic is frowned upon in Asgard, for he used his in the most grievous of ways."

The sorcerer stiffened considerably as the mention of his own story echoed excitedly from the child's lips. He softened a bit at the girl's perspective, finding her surprisingly accurate ideas about him truly endearing and enlightening coming from such a young mind. How is it that she does not know who I am, then? he thought.

Is it truly possible that while Thor had obviously told his daughter many stories of him, the "God of Mischief," that he had also deliberately failed to mention that the "evil sorcerer" contained within their own dungeon and the "God of Mischief" were one in the very same? How clever of you, Thor. How clever, indeed.

"Do you believe yourself to be evil?" Rose asked suddenly.

"Why do you ask?" the sorcerer rebutted in confusion.

"Well... I was thinking... Maybe...perhaps... Loki was born kind and good. It was only his choices that turned him evil. So, perhaps the same thing happened to you...?" Rose suggested innocently.

"Perhaps," the sorcerer conceded. "What fate, pray tell, befell Loki?" He was curious to know just how much the child had been told of his story.

"He was captured many years ago and contained somewhere where he could no longer harm the subjects of the land or seek revenge upon my father, though I know not who captured him or where he is kept," Rosalie answered him honestly, still unable to put two and two together.

"It seems that he and I share similar fates," the sorcerer spoke again, remaining still, unsure as to why Rose hadn't recognized him by now. Surely, the girl's father had shown her portraits of him; or perhaps, he deliberately had not in order to keep Rose from ever discovering that the evil sorcerer in the dungeons was, in fact, the God of Mischief, whose story his daughter so deeply loved, should she ever manage to venture far enough to find out. That would have been a wise choice, considering that the young princess had managed to do exactly that.

Rose's gaze devoured every visible inch of the man from his beautiful, silky black hair (which, somehow seemed clean and vibrant despite having spent years within this cell) to his gorgeous emerald green eyes, full, supple lips, and exquisite angles and curves. He was quite the mesmerizing sight, and Rosalie could not stop staring. There was something very breathtaking about the man.

"You're quite beautiful," Rose spoke unashamedly before she could stop herself.

The sorcerer frowned slightly, but let a small smile grace his lips. "Thank you, darling," he said sweetly and sincerely, as he continued to smile at the blonde. "You are quite lovely as well," he told her, and surprised himself to find that he truly meant it.

Rose endearingly dropped her gaze to the floor before peeking back up at the sorcerer shyly and whispering her own thank-you. As she stood there staring at the man, she wondered what evil he had done before he was captured, because to Rosalie, he did not seem evil at all. On the contrary, he seemed quite kind and lovely. Perhaps her father had been wrong in labeling this man as evil.

As the thought of her father entered her mind, Rosalie suddenly jumped and gasped, panic coursing through her veins as she realized that she had been gone quite a long time now, distracted by the alluring raven-haired captive. Her mother and father would be in a total panic. She must get back as quickly as possible, though the thought of leaving the man before her pained her for some reason. She felt an odd connection to the sorcerer. Perhaps, though, she could sneak back down and visit her again.

"Are you alright?" the sorcerer asked.

"Yes!" Rose tried to reassure, but her voice came out in a squeak. "It's just I have been gone a long while now. I must get back to the castle. My parents will be frantic and very upset with me."

"Yes, well, you should hurry along then, Princess." Rose nodded her agreement but lingered a short while longer, simply staring into the beautiful green eyes before her. Eventually, though, she finally forced her feet to move as she quickly turned and headed back down the damp and dark passageway, but not before turning back quickly to see the sorcerer still kneeling by the bars of his cell.

"May I visit you again?" Rosalie asked, unsure of whether or not she should request permission to visit a prisoner, since she could very well visit on her own accord seeing as how the sorcerer was obviously not going anywhere.

"Would you like to?" the sorcerer asked kindly, tilting his head curiously at the girl.

"I would, yes," the strawberry blonde told him, nodding her head vigorously.

"Very well then," the raven-haired man sighed with a smile. "Off you go, now."

He was just as curious about the princess as the princess was curious about him. Perhaps, he could win the girl over and eventually use her as a bargaining chip to gain his freedom. Ideas began to flick madly through his head as be watched the bouncing blonde curls turn the bend at the end of the passageway and disappear entirely from view.

_I wonder when she will return..._

**_A/N: Hope everyone liked Loki and Rose's first interaction! Let me know what you thought or what you'd like to see in future installments by reviewing. I want to write this to the gratification of the story's followers. Thank you for taking an interest! _**


	4. Chapter 4

**_Author's Note: Glad to see that many are continuing to enjoy the story. This chapter is a short one. I apologize for that, but it concerns something that was previously mentioned as occurring in chapter 3. Now, there have been some questions pertaining to how old Rosalie is, and I plan on answering this particular question more in depth in the next chapter. Until that time, I hope you enjoy! Thank you for reading! (Just a little hint: Reviews fuel me to keep writing! ;)_**

The reigning King, Thor, made his way swiftly through the dungeons, as per his weekly routine, to visit the cell of his estranged brother, Loki. Truly, his visits were more his ways of reassuring himself that his brother was still tucked safely away within his magical prison, unable to wreak further havoc upon the realm. Despite the cell having held his nemesis perfectly well for a full ten years now, Thor still felt the need to reassure himself weekly that nothing had changed, for he knew the man better than any. His brother was cunning and inventive, and more powerful than any other he had ever come across, with the exception, perhaps, of the Allfather, Odin. Therefore, Thor would not be foolish enough to ever harbor absolute confidence in Loki's capture and imprisonment, knowing that it was entirely possible the sorcerer might somehow manage to find a means of escape, regardless of how frequently Jane had assured him he was being overly cautious and deeply paranoid.

Yet, perhaps there lay a deeper reason as to why Thor insisted on visiting his brother. Perhaps, deep within himself, Thor still held out on the hope that the God of Mischief would see the error of his ways and change. Perhaps Thor still harbored love for the man he had fought with and grown up with in companionship. But thoughts such as these were repressed as Thor pressed onward, keeping the hood of his dark grey cloak pulled loosely around his head, masking himself from the glaring stares of the prisoners he passed on his journey to the furthest chamber of all. He swept swiftly around the bend toward Loki's cell, stopping only a few short steps from the cell glowing walls. Loki was nestled in the back corner as usual, though Thor knew he was inspecting him closely from his peripheral vision.

"If it isn't the great, mighty Thor come to pay a visit to the God of Mischief," Loki drawled dryly, eyeing Thor indifferently. Thor lowered his hood, his gaze locking onto Loki's.

"Loki," Thor acknowledged him, nodding curtly as he did so.

"To what do I owe this immense displeasure, Thor?" The raven-haired man spat at the reigning king. "As you can see, I am as I was previously, still very much a captive prisoner."

"You deserve to be here," Thor replied, his tone authoritative but with a hint of sadness. Loki had grown so tired of hearing that vastly annoying touch of pity that frequently tainted his nemesis's voice. Pity was something Loki absolutely abhorred, especially from those who once played a hand in the events that led to his warranting said pity to begin with. Loki found himself reflecting back to his encounter with Rosalie for the briefest of moments, wondering why it was that he hadn't been so off put when she had expressed her pity.

"Oh, do spare me your sorely inspired lecture on the many ways in which 'good' always prevails," Loki scoffed from his corner, suppressing his thoughts of the young princess. Enduring Thor's frequent visits along with his even more frequent tales of the high and mighty was a far worse punishment than eternal imprisonment. How cruel fate had been to sentence him with both.

"Besides," he spat, "should you not be off with your darling mortal Jane, doing whatever it is you two do?"

Thor scoffed at Loki's attitude. He had long ago succumbed to the fear that the man would never change, his hope continually dying slowly in his chest. After the many chances at redemption that he provided his brother, still the master sorcerer remained stubborn and fueled only by his need for vengeance, power, and absolute destruction.

"You will never learn, brother," Thor said softly, sliding his hood back atop his shining golden hair, and turning to leave. Loki Odinson (or Laufeyson as he liked to constantly remind Thor) had truly become a lost cause, tainted by his own bitterness.

"Learning is for children," Loki called after him, and that is when an idea struck his brain, his lips quirking up into a wicked smirk. "Speaking of which, Thor, has it ever occurred to you to have a darling bundle of your own?"

Thor halted in his steps, his body going visibly rigid at the indirect mention of his daughter. Loki almost cackled with glee at having the desired effect upon his captor. This was going to be fun.

"But what's this, your majesty?" Loki played upon the title with malicious provocation. "Have you already had a child? Your own precious pride and joy?"

Thor slowly turned to face Loki, the anger flashing in his eyes betraying his answer.

"You have now?" Loki continued in mock surprise. "Why, I'm sure he will make quite the strapping young man. Boisterous, reckless, unruly and robust, just like his father."

Thor had to keep from lashing out by biting his tongue. Best not to lose control in front of Loki. Any perceived sign of weakness on his part would deem him powerless to Loki's taunts. However, Loki saw right through his brother, and resumed musing.

"Ah.. But no. Perhaps you and Jane have given birth to a treasured daughter. I imagine she looks much like her father, yes? The perfect little princess—those same bright, blue eyes and that same stubborn, dimpled chin, most likely cupped by an abundance of sickeningly sweet and heavy princess curls. Tell me, brother, is a she a miniature Thor? Or does she resemble her mother?" Loki could hardly contain his laughter at the pained and terrified shock that splattered Thor's features as his breath audibly hitched in his throat. This was too easy.

Thor panicked internally upon hearing the warlock's words. Why was he asking about Rose? Ten years had gone by with Loki in this prison and not once had he ever mentioned the possibility of a princess reigning the palace, so this sudden addition was highly alarming to the King. And how had Loki known of Rosalie's features? Or much less that his child was a girl? He supposed that anyone could guess as to how a child would resemble a parent, yet Loki's description had been so accurate. Rose had, in fact, inherited his father's blue eyes as well as his chin. Thor swallowed thickly, choking down the lump that had risen angrily in his throat. He locked eyes with Loki, approached the cell once more in three long strides, then poured every ounce of threat he could possibly manage into a glare as he spoke his final words before leaving the dungeon.

"The princess is none of your concern, Loki, as she will remain." Loki didn't even have the time to point out that Thor had just confirmed to him that the child was female before Thor shot from the passageway, his stomping steps echoing in splashes throughout the entirety of the dungeon before finally dissipating into quiet reverberations once he had gone.

"We shall see about that, Thor," Loki mused to himself once the King had disappeared from his sight. "We shall certainly see."


	5. Chapter 5

_**Author's Note: I love you guys! Thanks so much for the wonderful reviews! I felt that more Loki/Rosalie interaction was needed. So here goes! **_

A mere two moons passed before the young princess's intrigue finally devoured her patience once more, and she slipped from her soft bed while the brilliant stars of the cosmos hung suspended in the black-lit canopy overhead. Rosalie padded quietly from her bedchamber and into the open passageway, careful to stick to the shadows lining the walls as she darted to the tapestry that hid the entrance to one of her favorite secret passageways, beginning her long, evening trek to the West Wing of the castle.

Once in the West Wing, Rose used the same technique as before to shroud herself from the guards' eyesight of the entrance to the forbidden corridor. As soon as her invisibility shroud had completely blinded herself from the guards' view, she darted unseen past the two bulky men, and slipped quietly once more into the forbidden corridor. She took the stairs practically at a run, though once she found her way into the dungeon, she wished she had thought to don her robe. The draft sent frigid chills rippling across her porcelain skin that nearly set her teeth to chattering. She darted as quickly and quietly as possible past the many prison cells, surprised to note that not a single prisoner was awake. Loud snores and sighs filled the passageway, bouncing off the walls so that the dungeon itself sounded as one giant breathing beast. It slightly unnerved the girl, though she kept on, keen on seeing the evil sorcerer once again.

Loki had always been a fitful and restless sleeper. His memories served as vivid nightmares, never allowing him a single convalescing slumber; however, one positive aspect of his restless sleeping was that he was easily aroused and always keenly alert and aware of his surroundings, even while in slumber. That is how he heard the tiniest of splashes sound quietly from the dungeon corridor. The former prince cracked open a bleary eye and slightly lifted his head from the flat pillow of his cot to inspect the noise. There, standing not a foot from her cell's magical barrier was the tiny, sleeping-gown-and-slippers-clad figure of one Princess Rosalie, her brilliant ocean blue-green eyes shining like a feline's in the darkness of the dungeon.

"Back so soon, Princess?" Loki teased calmly, masking the shock in his voice with ease. The child only nodded, her sleep-tousled tangle of golden red curls bobbing dramatically around her face and shoulders. Loki softened at the sight of her, and slowly lifted himself from his cot to slide over to the cell bars and drop down to the princess's level. As he drew nearer the girl, he noticed the way her tiny hands shook and the goose-pimpled flesh of her chilled arms as she shivered in the cool air of the dungeon. A sudden urge to protect the young blonde rose fiercely in the fallen prince, shocking the very air from Loki's lungs. He had certainly not expected to feel anything toward the child, let alone with such a resonating power.

"Rosalie," Loki whispered, his emerald eyes searching the blonde's curious ones, "You should not be here. It is quite late and you will fall ill from the cold."

"I wanted to see you," Rose told him, shrugging as if that simple desire was explanation enough for her late-night excursion.

"Why?" Loki asked, curious, his head tilting to the side, eyes narrowed slightly. Surely the child could not have desired his company to such a degree that she could not have waited until a more agreeable hour to visit the dungeons, and yet here she stands, evidence to the contrary.

"I do not know," Rosalie answered honestly, wrinkling her brow and nose in a way that Loki found endearingly adorable, though he would never admit such a revelation aloud. Evil Sorcerers do not find things or people "adorable," nor would they ever condone the use of such descriptive words. That would be one sure way to ruin an image. "I simply wanted to. I feel as though I know you somehow."

"What do you mean?" the raven-haired man asked, impressed at how mature the child frequently managed to sound and act. Rose stepped even closer to the wall of sparkling, gold magic, so that she and Loki were as close as physically possible with only the wall as a barrier between them. Rose ensnared Loki in her gaze, staring deeply into his eyes as she continued her explanation.

"It is your eyes, I think," Rose answered him. "When I look at you, I feel a tug in my chest." She rubbed her chest to indicate the space just over her small heart. "It is as if a part of me recognizes a part of you, though we are only just meeting. I do not understand it. Do you feel it as well?"

Loki swallowed audibly and blinked rapidly, unsure of how to answer the child. He had admitted to himself upon first meeting the child that something seemed special about her; despite Loki's disdain for the girl's father, he felt inexplicably drawn to the princess. It was a stunning revelation to learn that a mere child such as Rosalie had felt the overwhelming sensation as well, and not only felt it, but had obviously simply accepted the feeling, choosing, even, to indulge in it despite knowing that this man was an "evil" sorcerer.

Despite his extensive knowledge of magic, Loki could think of no plausible or logical cause that would warrant a connection to the child. He had never met her until just recently, nor had he even known of her existence until now. Even so, he still felt as if he knew the small child. Of course, perhaps this feeling was only due to the fact that he was the child's estranged uncle.

Loki's brain screamed for him to lie to the child. His thoughts cautioned him, Keep your distance! He would need to remain objective if he was to eventually use the child for his own gain. Despite his mind's own heavy foreboding, though, the child's uncle choked out two small, but entirely truthful, words. "I do."

The young princess's face lit up so beautifully upon hearing the warlock's confession that Loki could not help but echo the child's smile with one of his own. They simply huddled close to the barrier a moment longer, staring at one another, before Rose spoke again.

"Are you going to order me to leave?" Rose asked the fallen prince, who shook his head gently in response.

"No, I cannot order you to leave. I cannot order you to do anything. You are a royal, Rosalie. You have command over me, not the reverse," Loki admitted quietly, surprised to hear not a hint of disdain decorating such an admission. He found he simply could not be hateful or angry or even disinterested toward the girl. He was captivated by the kind and willful spirit of the princess, and he found he quite enjoyed her company.

Excellent, Loki thought. You know you have been held in captivity for entirely too long when you would rather have the company of a toddler than of an adult. Gods help me.

"Well, then, I would very much like to stay," Rose told her, that beautiful smile still brightening her lovely young features.

"Then you shall stay," Loki said with a short nod. "However, I must insist you cover up. Your teeth are chattering from the cold." Loki had only just noticed the sound of the chatter, which he quickly traced back to the tiny mouth a mere foot from his face.

"I'm fine," Rosalie insisted stubbornly, resisting the urge to shiver while speaking.

"You most certainly are not," Loki spoke with no room for argument. "I would offer you my blanket, but..." He eyed the magical barrier keeping him within in disdain. Never in his life had he wanted to be able to pass the barrier more than he did now. His niece was frozen to the bone all because she was determined to visit him, and he had no way to comfort her or offer her anything. Oh yes... Loki loathed being imprisoned at this particular moment. Then, an idea spawned within his mind.

"Have you ever attempted to use your magic to regulate your body temperature?" Loki inquired.

Rosalie shook her head, an inquisitive frown donning her features.

"Try it," Loki suggested.

"How do I do it?" Rose asked.

Loki drew his lips together in deep thought. "It is difficult to explain," he admitted. "How do you normally call upon your magic?"

Rose's eyebrows furrowed as she thought about how she maneuvered her magic to do exactly as she commanded. "I just feel it," she said. "I usually just close my eyes and think about what I want or what I need when the situation calls for it, then it'll happen."

"Have you ever manifested a fire or a flame?" Loki questioned, truly surprised to learn that magic came so easily to the young princess. He instantly recalled how in his youth, it had taken him years to fully understand the indulgence of yearning that magic required one to feel. Rosalie seemed to have grasped this understanding rather quickly.

Rose nodded eagerly. "I have," she confirmed. "I summon flames to read by at night when mother and father believe me to be asleep."

"So you remember how it feels to utilize that flame?" Loki pressed cautiously. Rose nodded. "Good. Now, I want you to use that same feeling you use to create a flame to warm yourself. Focus your energy into defrosting your body."

"Won't that burn me?!" Rose shrieked in alarm.

"No," Loki reassured calmly. "Not if you focus. Don't necessarily think of a flame, but of the crisp warmth of your bed late at night. Of being outside and feeling the sun upon your skin." Rosalie didn't look convinced.

"Trust me," Loki smiled softly. "I do not wish to lead you astray, nor do I wish to harm you," he whispered, capturing the princess's gaze in an effort to convey his sincerity. "I would only but feel more at ease if you weren't trembling like a leaf."

Rose held the sorcerer's gaze a moment longer, before shrugging with a small sigh and closing her eyes. She did as the sorcerer advised and focused her thoughts and energy to how warm and content she felt when she rode her beloved horse, Genevieve. How the light beaming down from the sky heated her porcelain skin. She sighed contentedly as the feeling of warmth rushed back into her frozen limbs and smiled up at the sorcerer once she'd stabilized her temperature.

"Thank you," she said sweetly.

"You are quite welcome, although I don't know why you're thanking me. You did that all on your own. The control you hold over your magic is quite impressive," Loki told her. Rose blushed at the compliment and smiled softly at the praise. Then, a previous curiosity surged to the forefront of Loki's mind once more as he pondered the maturity of the girl before him. "May I ask your age, Princess?"

"I am eight years and ten months." Loki was stunned by this fact, noting that the child clearly had an old soul given her quaint way with words and surprisingly mature manner of conducting herself. But how was it that she was merely the age of a newly born infant?

"How is it that you appear much older than you are?" Loki questioned before he could stop himself.

"Oh! That..." Rosalie looked ashamed for a brief moment before she launched into her explanation. "I'm half-mortal. My mother, the queen, was born in Midgard. My father is Asgardian, therefore making the other half of me Asgardian as well. I age much more rapidly than any within the kingdom. However, the physicians of the land say that once I reach the age of eighteen, my growth and aging will reduce and resemble that more of my father. Until that time, I will age quickly."

Loki processed what information the princess had disclosed to him. He assumed that it made it hard for the girl to have friends, for the physical differences between she and her peers would always be ever-changing and disparaging.

"And you?" The raven haired man laughed aloud at Rose's words as he had not expected the girl to counter his question and ask for his age, and yet, a part of him echoed that he should have seen that coming.

Loki sighed and shook his head, smiling softly at the child. "Well, if you are nearly nine years, then I am one thousand and fifty-seven years now."

Rose's eyes widened at the revelation, although she wasn't sure why she was so surprised. Her father and his companions had to be around this sorcerer's age. "And you have no wife?" Rosalie asked, eager to learn more of the warlock.

"I do not," Loki replied simply. Emma smiled brightly at this news.

"What is that beautiful smile for?" Loki asked tenderly as he studied the young girl's expression.

"I am pleased to know you are not bound in marriage," Rose explained, still grinning as she did so.

"Oh?" Loki asked, curious as to why this fact would please the princess. "Why is that?"

"Because I do not wish to share you," she whispered, her eyes glittering sweetly with her confession, while her cheeks blushed in slight embarrassment for even admitting such a thing aloud.

The fallen prince was taken aback at such an admission, though, he simply chuckled heartily at the words, allowing the loving warmth of the girl's smile and obvious affection for the sorcerer she'd only just met to fill him with a joy and tenderness he had not felt in many, many years.

"Well, seeing as how I am trapped here, I believe you have no need to worry about that." Rosalie simply grinned with her joy, the two of them falling into a comfortable silence in the dark. After a while, Loki finally broke the silence.

"Are you not tired or weary, Rosalie? It is very late."

"I am quite awake now," Rose told him, her eyes sparkling in the faint glow of the illumination of the magic encasing Loki in his spacious cell. "Are you not tired?" she countered to the sorcerer. "You did not seem to be slumbering when I arrived despite time of night."

"I do not sleep well," Loki admitted to the child, thinking of the nightmares that too often plagued his dreams.

"Perhaps, a story would help?" Rose asked, her eyes wide and hopeful, excited at the possibility of sharing one of her favorite bed-time tales with the sorcerer.

"Perhaps," the man agreed with a smirk. "Would you like to tell me one?"

"Very much," Rosalie exclaimed. "There are so many to choose from, though. Which would you have me recite?"

"Very well," Loki said, agreeing to the story. He pretended to mull over the options in his head before speaking the desire that had entered his brain at the princess's first mention of a story. He leaned forward, smiling mischievously at the child before whispering,

"Tell me of the God of Mischief."


	6. Chapter 6

_**Author's Note: sorry this one's so short! Just a quick transition chapter. Thought it was about time that Jane made an appearance. Let me know what you think by clicking that little button that says "review!" Haha. **_

Queen Jane slipped quietly onto the private balcony of the royal bedchamber, sauntering up behind her unsuspecting husband as he leaned into the railing, staring wordlessly across the vast expanse of their breathtaking and beloved kingdom. Many late evenings and early mornings, the Queen had woken to find her golden haired beloved perched here, lost endlessly in thought, his rugged yet beautiful face furrowed in worries of which he had yet to voice. She suddenly slipped her slender, wiry arms around the king's waist, pulling herself sweetly against the side of his body so that chin nestled softly against his shoulder. Thor let out a soft chuckle at the surprising touch before letting out a heavy sigh and wrapping his arms around his wife, tilting her head back to rest against her love's strong shoulder.

"What troubles you?" Jane questioned quietly. Thor sighed heavily again. His charming mortal wife knew him so well, ever mindful of his moods and emotions.

"I worry for Rose," Thor admitted in a soft voice, his brow furrowing ever further, marring his graceful features.

"What worries you of our daughter, Thor?" Jane pushed her further for answers. "She is as perfect as a princess can be."

Thor smiled sweetly at his wife's adoration of and affection for their beloved daughter. The King and Queen were both beyond smitten with their bright, young girl, yet Jane had always been purely wrapped around Rosalie's tiny finger, unable to deny her any wish or desire, and perfectly content to indulge her growing mind and eager, adventurous soul at every turn. In many ways, their daughter was a perfect embodiment of her mother—brave, curious, determined, and an impressively skilled and quick study in nearly everything she attempted, despite her immense youth. It was an aspect of Rose's dynamic personality that Thor had always adored, seeing his wonderful Jane Foster shine brightly through his little girl's luminous spirit.

"She is, indeed," Thor agreed with his wife. "Yet, I am troubled by her interests, Jane. As of late, she speaks more and more frequently of the The God of Mischief."

"She has always been enamored with Loki's history. You know as much, Thor. He was a grand and terrifying fixture of your own past, as well as mine to a degree. It is only natural that Rose should be curious of such tales."

"Yes, I agree, Jane, but her interest has grown significantly. She only ever requests tales of the Loki anymore, and these two moons past, she…" Thor trailed off, a sickening lump suddenly sticking painfully in his throat.

"What is it?" Jane prompted, tightening her hold around her husband as she sensed his growing discomfort.

"These two moons past, she has requested stories of the Evil Sorcerer. As you know, we have never disclosed to Rosalie that the warlock we harbor in the castle dungeons is the very God of Mischief she has grown so enamored with," Thor told his wife, swallowing the lump like a ten-ton stone weighing heavily in the pit of his stomach.

Jane furrowed her brow upon hearing this news, though it had yet to trouble her as deeply as it had her husband. Rosalie had always been a curious mind, and Jane had grown quite accustomed to her endless inquisitions about any and every thing she could get her hands on. Perhaps, they had given her far too much free reign of the castle library. The only books made explicitly forbidden to their daughter had been those upon the highest shelves of the library, those which read of their land's darkest magic and most fearsome and vile creatures. The monarchs kept such books in the event that they might ever need such knowledge to prepare for or combat great evils should they threaten the people of their Kingdom. However, they had agreed that such content was far too advanced and much too dark for Rosalie's young eyes. The remaining books of the library, however, and said books were seemingly unlimited, were freely open to their daughter, and she indulged as often as possible, soaking up as much information on as many topics as she could get her tiny hands on.

"Thor, Rosalie is a curious child."

"Yes, but Jane, Rose must never know that the Evil Sorcerer of the dungeons is Loki. If ever she were to discover this truth, she would become determined to see the man. You know how well she loves the stories of my brother," Thor cautioned, fear evident in his voice.

"I agree, darling. Perhaps, though, she is merely intrigued. She did mention to me on our rides recently that she had been learning of sorcerers in her lessons as of late. It could merely be a result of what she's been exposed to in her lessons."

"Perhaps you are right, my love, and I am simply worrying myself over naught more than a child's love of enthralling bed tales," Thor agreed quietly, looking down to the flawless beauty of the human mortal he had loved since the moment he laid eyes on her. Thor ducked down and planted a shallow kiss atop his wife's dainty nose.

"Do not worry yourself on this, Thor," Jane attempted to ease her husband's nerves, gently guiding him away from the balcony. "Rosalie is safe, and she is simply broadening her mind. Allow her this indulgence for now, darling. It is important that she learn as much of our history as possible. We should be proud of our scholarly child. She is quite the sight, and not without the mind to match such beauty." Jane smiled brightly as he said these words, and her crooked, beautiful smile reminded Thor so much of their daughter's. It warmed his heart infinitely so as he followed his wife to bed, his worries soon melting away in the heat of his beloved's embrace.


	7. Chapter 7

**_Author's Note: Alright, I'd like to address a few things before the next section, and I apologize in advance for the length. There have been a few concerns as to what direction Rosalie and Loki's relationship is heading, and I'd like to say that the path the relationship will eventually mold into will be clear by the end of this chapter. That being said, I know many won't approve. And that's completely okay. I understand. However, please trust that what transpires within the rest of the story will be handled as realistically and maturely as possible. It won't be as scandalous as it may appear; I promise. There will be many plot twisting events that occur before I reach the desired conclusion of this story. The destination will be a rocky yet rewarding one. Another thing I'd like to address is Jane's formality. I agree that the way I've written Jane is very much out of character, but I was going on the idea that Jane is now a queen and has adopted many of the Asgardian mannerisms and formal ways of speaking. She's a regal queen now. However, in the future her "Midgardian" ways will resurface so to speak. Alright, enough chatter. On to the next. Please let me know what you think, even if you choose to criticize. I understand we all have opinions, so please don't hesitate to voice yours. Just be nice about it. :)_**

_.._

Several weeks had now passed since young Rosalie's first adventure into the dungeons in search of the infamous Evil Sorcerer, and the princess had made it a point to visit the beautiful, raven haired man as often as possible since, only growing more and more infatuated with him with every visit. The strawberry blonde child had been back to the dungeons nearly every night in the past month, with only a few exceptions when her father's keen senses had focused too heavily upon his daughter's newfound exhaustion or overly eager requests for tales of the sorcerer. Such requests had nearly surpassed those for her formerly favorite tales of the God of Mischief, which only made her father more suspicious, so Rose vowed to be more cautious, asking frequently instead for tales of her godmother, the warrior, Sif, of early tales of the Warrior's Three, or of her mother's friends that still resided in Midgard. It seemed to have eased her father's worries, so Rose considered her efforts a success.

Despite the many tales of the sorcerer's evils, Rose could not bring herself to abandon the man or to ever truly believe him to be as evil as was claimed. There was something so pure and so kind in the depths of the sorcerer's warm, forest green gaze when he peered at Rosalie through the distorted, magically bound walls of his prison. Rose had spent many nights staring into those deep, emerald pools, falling further and further into their depths as she shared her many favored stories of the God of Mischief with the prisoner as well as her own personal opinions and perspectives of the legendary man that was Loki. Beyond that, she had shared much of herself with the sorcerer, speaking often of her desire for adventure, for knowledge, and for love, and she had greatly enjoyed those rare nights when the mysterious warlock would share his own truths and even, his dreams, with the child. For Rosalie, the sorcerer had become her truest and most beloved friend, despite being separated by the barrier of a magical prison intended to steal life and time from the broken man within.

As Rose now made her way down the spiraling stairwell that led to the dungeons, she pondered, surprisingly for the first time, whether a time would ever come in which her new friend would be freed from his prison, a time in which she would not have to hide her love of the man. It pained her heart to think that none had seen the good of the sorcerer, that none believed he could or would ever change. They simply did not know the sorcerer as Rosalie knew him, because Rose knew him no longer as a sorcerer, but simply as a man. As a beautiful, kind, and fascinating man who, in Rose's mind, had suffered clearly just as much as he had caused suffering.

Loki's entire universe had come to revolve around the curious, blonde child who, unlike any in such a long time, actually desired his company and stirred his long-since dead and silent heart to beating frantically once more. The princess was a heavenly reprieve from Loki's endless loneliness. It fascinated Loki to no end to find that despite the girl's intimate and detailed knowledge of the many, many vile and cruel acts he had committed, he never found a hint of judgment or disgust in the blonde's voice, nor had he ever seen even the slightest touch of apprehension or damnation in her ocean blue gaze. It was truly a wondrous and invigorating feeling, that of being freed even momentarily from the burden of his past and of his sins. In his times spent with Rosalie, Loki was no longer the God of Mischief or even the traitor of Asgard. He was simply a man and perhaps even, a friend.

Loki had grown to adore the child so devoutly that he no longer even indulged ideas of using the girl to his advantage. He simply took refuge in the princess's loving and adoring gaze and endless supply of conversation. It surprised the sorcerer to realize the depth of his depression when the jubilant, blonde child was absent, and the sheer joy that would ignite his every cell when wild, reddish golden princess curls came bouncing into view just around the distant bend of the dungeons. Perhaps, Loki thought, this is what he had been missing for so long—someone simply willing to listen and to comfort with no need for explanation and no desire to judge. Rosalie had quickly become the greatest gift of all.

"Rose!" Loki smiled broadly as the princess bounded suddenly around the bend, quickly coming into view as she raced toward the sorcerer's cell. His excitement to see the child was evident in his adoring gaze and brilliant smile as he quickly took his place in a short chair he kept positioned as closely to the wall as possible as better to see the girl during their visits. Rose waved excitedly as she laid out the blanket she had grown accustomed to packing along into the dungeon and taking a seat just in front of the golden flecked magical walls.

Loki smiled warmly at the girl as he waited for her to settle in comfortably. "How were your lessons today?" he inquired kindly.

"Quite dull," Rose told him with a roll of her eyes, which surprised Loki as the princess almost always seemed rather fascinated with each of her lessons, absorbing the knowledge like an eager sponge.

"Oh? And why is that?" Loki prompted her.

"Today's lesson was over the history of the reign of Odin, my grandfather."

Loki quite agreed with the girl, knowing that such a lesson would bore even him to tears, endless tales of the majestic, immaculate Allfather. Spare me, Loki thought. Yet he indulged the conversation further, curious of Rose's reasoning, as one would think a child would be fascinated by the history of a Kingdom she would one day come to rule.

"And why would you not wish to learn of the accomplishments of your ancestors?" the sorcerer asked.

"I tire of repetition," the princess answered, which made Loki chuckle as the ever-obvious maturity of the child amused him more and more every time the girl spoke. "The history of recent Asgardian history is included in my lessons every year. I know the history so well I could recite it in great detail as not only must I hear of it in my lessons, but also from my own father on countless occasions. It long ago lost its appeal."

"I suppose it would have, yes," Loki agreed, still chuckling slightly at the girl's exasperation.

"The history is only intriguing in its few days of so-called darkness, in the time of the short lived reign of King Loki. Of that story, I never grow weary," Rose said with a smile.

"Indeed. I, myself, have quite enjoyed your stories of the God of Mischief, but tell me, Rosalie, why are you so fascinated with your father's nemesis?" Loki had finally mustered up the courage to ask the one question he had wanted to ask the girl since the first night Rose had begun to recount the tales of the God of Mischief, and yet, he refrained from doing so time and time again. Part of him was afraid to learn the answer, though he was never able to determine precisely why. Perhaps he worried that Rose's fascination lie more with the involvement of her father than with Loki himself. Or worse, perhaps Rose had a particular interest in the darker aspects of life and magic, the possibility of which frightened Loki to no end. He remembered all too well the feeling of becoming utterly consumed by the darkness of suffering, of magic, and of power. He would never wish that for Rose. In fact, he had to admit to himself, if he could, he would do anything and everything within his power to maintain the purity of Rose's heart and soul, no matter the cost to himself. The girl had become too precious to him.

"I know not fully," Rose told him honestly. "I know many consider him to be a traitor of Asgard, but I've always felt like there is more to the story than is ever led on. I don't believe him to truly be my father's nemesis. There are times when my father speaks of Loki, and I can tell that he still cares for him. There must still be some humanity in the God of Mischief for my father to still harbor affections for him. But the more pressing reason is, for as long as I can remember, I have dreamt of him." This caught Loki off guard. Had the girl truly dreamt of him, and not only once, but her entire life thus far?

"What sort of dreams?" the sorcerer asked, eager to learn as much as possible of his seemingly inexplicable connection to the girl.

"They are strange dreams," the girl admitted. "Loki's face is never visible, so I am still unaware of his features, and yet, I always know that it is he in my dreams. They vary greatly as well, and though he is always quite powerful in my dreams, he is never evil to me. He is always kind and loving."

Loki smiled at this, feeling surprisingly sure that were he ever to come to know the child even during the height of his accumulation of darkness, he would have surely been unable to do naught but love her. "Go on," he prompted the princess, curious to learn more of her dreams.

"In many of my dreams, I am quite older. It is a truly strange sensation to see myself as a young woman in my dreams, though I am almost always an adult, and the God of Mischief is there and... We are never here in Asgard. We're always... someplace else. Someplace far less extravagant than Asgard. We're both very happy and, well—it is quite confusing to me. We are…" The girl stops abruptly mid-sentence, her brow furrowing and her lips pursing tightly, and Loki is shocked to see the deep crimson blush that immediately paints the child's fair cheeks and throat. The sorcerer was suddenly wary of whatever Rose had been about to divulge, and perhaps, given how conflicted the princess seemed to be about her dreams of the God of Mischief, he thought, he would not want to know, and yet he prompted the girl to continue anyway unable to tamp down his curiosity.

"The two of you are what, Rosalie?" Loki asked softly, but the girl's blush only grew exponentially and her gaze dropped quickly to devour the stony floor of the dungeon. The sorcerer found Rose's clear shyness and embarrassment beautifully endearing, so he attempted to soothe the girl as best he could. "It is quite alright, darling. You do not have to share with me if you do not wish to, but know that you can always share anything you wish with me and it will not change my affection for you. Do you understand?"

Rosalie smiled shyly, glancing back up to capture Loki's comforting gaze, eased by the love in the sorcerer's voice, and though the fiery blush still tainted her features, she nodded her understanding and took a deep breath. "You do not have to be ashamed of or embarrassed by whatever it is," Loki continued. "They are but mere dreams."

"Okay," Rose whispered so quietly that Loki barely caught it, but the man had indeed heard, and hopeful once more at Rosalie's willingness to share, he prompted the princess to continue.

"So, would you like to share with me?" the sorcerer asked tenderly, hoping the child's answer would be affirmative.

"I have never spoken of this with another," the little girl admitted, her blush growing once more until it painted her forehead as well, "but I will share it with you as you are my dearest friend." Loki's eyes stung at this revelation, and he had to blink rapidly in order to prevent any tears from falling. Those words meant more to him than he could express to the blonde, so he cherished them silently, choking back his sudden urge to cry sweet tears of joy and relief, for the precious princess had become his dearest, and only, friend as well.

Once the sorcerer had managed to swallow his emotions, he cleared his throat and spoke again to the child, hoping his voice would not break mid-sentence. "Thank you for trusting me, Rosalie. You are my dearest friend as well." Rose's smile upon hearing Loki's admission was so brilliant and so beautiful that the sorcerer nearly wept again, forever touched by this precious moment with the child who had stolen his heart.

They simply stared at one another a few moments longer, enjoying the comfortable silence in the aftermath of such solemnity and emotion, before Loki sweetly asked Rose to continue with the story of her dreams of the God of Mischief.

"So, when you dream of yourself as a young woman, the God of Mischief is there as well?"

"He is," Rose said, nodding.

"And do you know him well in these dreams?" Loki asked, hoping whatever revelation she was about to unfold from the child's dreams would not be nearly as dramatic as Rose's ever-growing blush would suggest.

"I do. We are…" This time, Loki simply waited for the girl to finish speaking, hoping that she could divulge the information without needing further encouragement, though if she did require as much, he would gladly provide it. He found he had endless patience when it came to the beautiful, young princess. Thankfully, though, Rose did not keep him waiting long; however, of all the words he was prepared to hear tumble next from the child's mouth, given the many shocking, terrible, and astonishing things he knew decorated his past, he certainly had not been prepared for this.

"We are in love."


	8. Chapter 8

_"We are in love."_

Though Loki did his best to school his features so as not to alarm the child or make her feel uneasy about sharing the content she was obviously conflicted by, he was so internally startled by the revelation. Loki took several long moments to compose his thoughts from the frazzled and fried mess they had become in the aftermath of Rose's confession before pulling his composure both internally and externally and determining to get to the bottom of this new information. He was careful, though, to keep the concern from his voice, maintaining his usual tender and soft tone with the child so as not to spook her from sharing.

"Rose, when you say the two of you are in love, are you referring to a romantic relationship?"

"I suppose," the child replied evasively. "In my dreams, the God of Mischief is my beloved. He is my betrothed."

Loki's sigh was blatantly audible and he scolded himself for letting it slip through as Rosalie's face contorted with confusion from his response, though he could not help the feeling of turmoil churning within him. The content of the child's dreams disturbed Loki. Perhaps, though, the girl had merely grown so enamored with the Loki of her stories that such adoration was bleeding into her dreams. It was certainly not uncommon for young princesses to dream of growing and marrying their perfect princes, so the sorcerer supposed that Rose's dreams were not entirely out of the ordinary. Perhaps they shocked him so because he happened to be the subject of such dreams. Combine this revelation with the inexplicable connection he seemed to share so intrinsically with the girl, though, and Loki was beginning to wonder if perhaps there was a bigger picture he was missing. Try as he might, though, no explanation his mind could invent to rationalize a grown man having such a connection with a mere child seemed logical enough to suffice.

"I know it doesn't seem right," Rosalie continued softly. "The God of Mischief would be my uncle if he were not in captivity. Yet, still, the same dreams are reoccurring."

"I see," Loki said, trying to reasonably think this through. He then forced his tense body to relax and visibly deflated of all rigid anxiety. "And do these dreams trouble you?"

"No, I simply do not understand them," Rose told him, much more comfortable now that the sorcerer seemed to have relaxed back into his typically easy and carefree manner reserved especially for the girl. "The God of Mischief, Loki, is imprisoned eternally. He could never be my betrothed, and would he not be quite a bit older than I am by the time I came to proper age to marry?"

Loki smirked at the princess's train of thought. Rosalie was such a unique child, completely without prejudice. Her concern remains not with the idea of being romantically connected to the God of Mischief, but with the worry that said traitor would surely be too old for her. Loki nearly laughed out loud at the notion.

"I suppose he would be," the sorcerer answered her, still smirking his amusement, as he also knew of the way Rosalie's aging would work in time with his own, as told by Rose herself upon their second meeting. As time progressed, the pair would eventually resemble close to the same age if Rosalie's life expectancy was projected to be half of Loki's

"Do not trouble yourself over such things, Princess," Loki comforted the girl. "They are but dreams. I am sure you will one day find the perfect prince to become your ideal betrothed."

The sorcerer said these words, believing them to be true, though he could not deny the unsettling pain that rippled through his chest at the thought. Perhaps, he did not wish to share Rose either. The thought of a day coming when the lovely princess would be married off to a young prince troubled Loki as it meant that surely, Rosalie would no longer be concerned with visiting the sorcerer, thus costing the raven haired man his only friend.

At this thought, Loki's pain only doubled. It was the first time he had entertained the idea that Rose's visits could end at any time. Would the princess grow weary of her time spent in the dungeons with the God of Mischief? And if she did, what would happen to the sorcerer? Would he even be able to muster the desire to live any longer, an eternity of absolute solidarity with vivid memories of what it once meant to have someone precious to share your soul with? Would he, once more, be consumed by his rage? Would he survive it?

"Hopefully that day won't come for a long while," Rose spoke with much desire to prolong that date for as long as possible, pulling Loki abruptly from his morbid thoughts. Loki studied the young girl, a smile painting his softened features. In that moment, he vowed to himself to cherish every second spent with the young girl, for as he had only just realized, his time with the princess was certainly finite with the possibility of ending any day, any minute. So, he swallowed down the growing lump in his throat and blinked away his rapidly rising tears, giving the strawberry blonde a soft, reserved smile as he nodded his head in answer.

"Yes, darling," he breathed, "Perhaps it won't."

_**A/N: This one was a short one, so I'm sorry about that. However, the next update should make up for this short installment. It's come to my attention that I've made some errors in the chapters (lack of re-reviewing and editing on my part) and I believe I've fixed some problems in previous updates. I apologize for any mistakes I make when writing, but sometimes it sucks writing in your phone's notes! Thank you all very much for your continued support! I cherish every review, follow and favorite to this story. It really means the world to me! **_


	9. Chapter 9

_**Author's Note: I truly am touched by how invested you all are in my story. This is my longest chapter yet, and it was a blast to write! Please let me know if my characterizations are off at any point in time. And let me know what you thought. Also, I'm always up for scene suggestions. Let me know what you want to see and I might be able to make it happen! **_

Rosalie stirred slowly from slumber, physically aware of another's touch on her young face. She blinked rapidly to clear the sleep from her blue eyes as the comforting face of her father crept into focus. The reigning king sat settled on the side of his daughter's bed, stroking the girl's tousled golden curls from her cheeks and smiling sweetly down at her.

"Happy Name Day, my child," Thor whispered to his daughter, planting a small, sweet kiss atop the princess's forehead. Rose's smile lit the entire room as she immediately bounded from beneath her blankets and into her waiting father's arms. Thor wrapped the princess tightly in his arms, planting tiny kisses in her hair as he tickled the girl's sides playfully, Rose squealing and laughing loudly as she wriggled about in the King's embrace.

A bark of feminine laughter filled the room, capturing the pair's attention. They turned to see Queen Jane standing in the open doorway of Rosalie's chamber, leaning lightly against the frame as she looked adoringly on at her husband and daughter playing merrily together. Such a sight warmed her like no other. Her perfect family so filled her heart that at times she thought it might burst with joy.

"Mother!" Rosalie squealed, jumping from her father's lap and sprinting across the chamber floor in her bare feet and night gown. As she reached the door, she leapt into the air at the same time her mother dipped into a squat to catch her mid-leap. She laughed warmly as she spun her around and around, planting kisses in her hair as Thor had done.

"Happy Birthday, Rosalie!" Jane said sweetly as she stopped her spinning to carefully set her young daughter back on her now unsteady feet, dizzied by the excited twirling.

"Mother," Rosalie giggled playfully. "Why do you call it Birthday when everyone else says Name Day?"

"Where I come from, we call it a Birthday," Jane replied easily, stroking her daughter's head in affection. "Because every year after your birth you gain another year to your age."

"And every year you insist on calling it a Birthday," Thor teased his wife, gliding over to his family and wrapping the pair in his bulky but warm embrace. Using his strength, he easily lifted his family from their feet, causing them to shriek and laugh, then set them back down when he felt they'd been messed with for long enough.

Rose's Name Day, or birthday, had always been quite the celebration at the castle with her parents indulging her every desire from Rose's favorite meals and baked goods, to visits to and from her family and friends, to trips into the thick of Asgardian society so that Rosalie could see the markets and speak with the people. It was also the one day a year on which Rosalie was exempt from her lessons. The young princess had cherished the freedom of every Name Day, making each one more special than the last.

"What would you like to do today, my darling?" Jane asked, the remnants of laughter still upon her lips, as the trio climbed onto Rose's immensely large bed. Rose immediately thought of the sorcerer, though she kept the thought safely hidden within her mind, never allowing herself to voice it; however, she couldn't help but want to spend her most special day with her dearest friend and for a brief moment, the princess was overwhelmed with the ache of being unable to do so. She shook herself quickly from her thoughts though and turned back to her mother.

"May I see Sif and the Warriors Three today?" Rosalie asked, knowing the answer already. Her parents had never denied her on this day.

"Of course!" Thor interjected while Jane nodded. "That is an excellent idea! I shall send for them." It had been a long while since the princess had paid visit to her godmother and her father's dearest friends. Of course, they were always around. They were very devoted to Thor and his reign, always instrumental in foreign affairs, but Rosalie hardly ever saw them for her lessons interfered with their arrivals and departures.

"But first," Jane interjected, having slipped from the room, and returning now with a small, beautifully decorated cupcake in hand, which she held out to her daughter as she knelt before her husband and daughter, both whom owned her heart, "you must make a wish."

Rose stared at the tiny candle that sat atop the cake, lit by a single, flickering flame. This was a tradition Jane had also urged to put to good use upon her arrival in Asgard. It was one of the few Midgardian traditions that Jane had ever cherished and enjoyed. So she made an effort to utilize this tradition for every birthday celebrated within the palace. Each year, Rose was urged to make a wish on her Name Day, and each year, she refrained from doing so. Initially her parents were both disgruntled and couldn't understand why their child would refuse to blow out the candle, but had grown accustomed to her brief rebuttal that she had everything she could ever wish for. Yet still, they presented her with the candle each year in hopes that one day she would change her mind and make a wish.

Truthfully, the princess had never felt the need or desire to request a wish on her Name Day, as she believed she had all she could ever hope for and needed nothing more. A tiny part of her also held a fraction of irrational fear that perhaps the universe granted princesses only a small number of wishes, which made her cautious of making wishes at all, afraid that she might use them for senseless purposes and no longer have them when she might truly need them.

This Name Day, however, Rose had a very specific, very dear-to-her-heart wish in mind, so she closed her eyes, leaned forward, and allowed the wish to fill her heart and mind. I wish for the freedom of the evil sorcerer, for his second chance. Then, she blew.

Both Jane and Thor were quite shocked. Never in her life had Rosalie made a wish for anything. What, pray tell, warranted her to make a wish now?

"You actually did it this time!" Jane laughed ecstatically, beaming at her daughter with sheer joy. "Darling, I'm so proud of you!"

Rosalie's forehead wrinkled in confusion. Proud for blowing out a candle?

Thor chortled in delight, wrapping an arm around Rose's shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "Now I must know! What did you wish for?"

"Thor, you can't ask that!" Jane scolded, playfully slapping her husband on the knee. "If she tells you it won't come true!"

"I'm only but curious," Thor protested, amused by his wife's fervent reaction. He then directed his attention back to his daughter, who seemed to be in a disturbingly deep thought, a small scowl upon her features while she stared off into space. "You have refused to make a wish for every year but this one. What changed your mind?"

Rosalie shook herself out of her train of thought and gave her father a cheeky grin. "Perhaps I have just grown one year wiser," she suggested teasingly.

"And that one year told you to not deny wishes, did it?" Thor chuckled, tackling his daughter onto her back, and continuing the tickle match that Jane had unintentionally interrupted. Rosalie shrieked and squealed until Thor eventually stopped, satisfied to see the look of eerie engrossment swiped from his daughter's delicate features.

As the laughter died off of the young girl's lips, she found her thoughts drifting to the sorcerer. In this moment, all she wanted was to see her friend; however, she knew she would have to wait until long after dark, slipping into the dungeons while her parents slumbered.

"May we go and see Sif and the Warriors Three now, Father?" Rosalie asked in an exasperated whisper, dismissing any further thoughts of the sorcerer.

"Indeed, darling," Thor responded promptly. "I shall send for them immediately." And Thor gave his daughter one last kiss to her forehead before departing the room.

"Come now, princess," Jane said, taking Rose's tiny hand into her own. "Let us find something for you to wear on your ninth birthday."

"Name Day," Rosalie automatically corrected before she could stop herself.

Jane smiled sweetly down at her blue-eyed daughter, resolving to the fact that she grew up in a much different world than her child would ever experience. So with an accepting nod, she agreed with a whisper.

"Name Day."

...

"Sif!" Rosalie cried, catching sight of her godmother as she rounded the corner to enter the courtyard, accompanied by her father.

"Rose!" Sif turned at the sound of the girl's excitement to meet the wild, blonde curls of her goddaughter, rushing towards her so quickly that she almost didn't catch the small child when she launched herself into Sif's arms.

"My goodness you've grown so!" Sif exclaimed. "How is it that you've grown so much in a few weeks alone? And your beauty has bloomed as well!" Rose giggled in response to Sif's compliments. Sif beamed down at the daughter of her best friend, a child of whom she absolutely adored. Of whom she would do anything for. Even lay down her own life for. "How's my warrior princess?"

"Wonderful now that you're here," Rosalie gushed truthfully.

"Hey! And what about us?" A burly, jovial voice boomed in mock offense from behind Sif and Rose. Rose peered around Sif's abdomen to meet the sight of the Warriors Three, Fandral, Volstagg and Hogun all grinning at the princess. Once she acknowledged their presence with an excited smile, they all sauntered up to greet the princess with warm embraces. When it came time to greet Fandral, however, he boldly hauled the princess up onto his shoulders, ever the show-off, catching Rose by surprise. She yelped, joyously startled by the brief adrenaline rush of the playful gesture.

"A princess should not have to tire her feet on her Name Day," Fandral announced enthusiastically. "She should be carted about and carried all day, cherished and worshiped by all those she passes!"

"Rightly so," Volstagg agreed with a deep chuckle.

"Oh please, Fandral!" Sif scolded in annoyance. "Stop being such a ham!"

"What? Do you not agree?" Fandral challenged the dark haired beauty.

"Of course I agree," Sif responded matter-of-factly, approaching Fandral with a sly smirk. "I only question whether or not you're worthy of carrying the princess upon your shoulders."

"Yes, Fandral," Volstagg jeered good naturedly. "Perhaps I should be given the privilege of transporting the princess to her every desired destination."

"Preposterous!" Fandral quipped indignantly, securing both of Rosalie's legs in place as they dangled on his chest, while Rose snickered at the relentless banter occurring between her father's most precious friends. "I offered first and therefore will be her personal chauffeur for the day!"

"Oh come now, Fandral," Hogun grinned mischievously. "We know you only offer to do so because you desire the extra height."

At this everyone burst into fits of laughter, including Rosalie whose giggles were higher than the rest. While everyone knew Fandral took pride in his appearance, one thing he could never gain was the extra few inches that Thor, Volstagg and many other warriors within Asgard's army possessed. Not to imply that Fandral didn't have a fine stature, but he was always in search of ways to seem larger and more statuesque than he appeared.

"My friends," Thor roared in remnants of laughter. "Thank you all for being here today."

"Anything for Princess Rosalie," Sif vowed warmly. "It is her Name Day after all."

"Indeed it is!" Fandral exclaimed, bouncing Rose upon his shoulders blithely. "And what is it her highness desires to do today?" he inquired, lifting his head ever so slightly to address the captivating blue eyed child.

Rosalie seemed to mull over her options for a few moments before making a decision. "May we go riding?"

"Ah! A marvelous idea!" Fandral exclaimed. "Any oppositions?" Of course, none opposed to the princess's wishes. They were all thrilled to be included in the festivities of the child's special day. They adored her with all the capacity of their hearts. To them, she was a precious gem, the perfect combination of Thor and a polite little lady.

"Very well then boys," Sif smiled crookedly and archly. "Allow Rose and I to show you how it's done." She winked at the strawberry blonde, who's smile radiated sheer happiness. The six then made their way to the royal stables, where they would mount their respective horses and ride until it was dark. Unbeknownst to the rest, Rose was grateful when the day began to come to a close. She had but one person on her mind.

...

Rose scurried quickly and excitedly along the forbidden corridor, making her way down the stairwell and into the dungeons so that she may share the remaining few hours of her Name Day with her closest friend. She kept the small cupcake she had stolen from the kitchens tucked safely between her small hands as she practically ran the length of the dungeons to see the sorcerer she had come to love and adore over the last four months.

"I have something for you!" Rose squealed as she rounded the bend, causing Loki's head to snap in her direction. He quickly rose from his cot and made his way to the gold walls, smiling brightly at the young princess as the girl sprinted right up to the cell.

"You do?" Loki asked gingerly. "And what do you have for me, darling?" Rose excitedly held out the small cake.

"That is very kind of you," Loki smiled thinly. "But unfortunately, I am unable to accept it," he sighed, gesturing to the magical barrier surrounding his cell.

"Actually, you are," Rose responded with a sly, mischievous smirk. And before Loki could question the girl, the cake disappeared from Rosalie's palm and reappeared right in the sorcerer's lap. Loki was astonished and dumbfounded. For many moments, he didn't say a word, merely staring at the cake as if afraid to move. As if even breathing would make it disappear again.

"How did you do that?" he managed to croak.

Rosalie giggled in delight at the sorcerer's reaction, her smile illuminating the dullest corners of Loki's very heart and soul. "I've been practicing," she explained.

"Yes," Loki spoke immediately after Rose. "But how did you get past the barrier? Even my magic cannot penetrate its surface."

"It's different because you're on the inside," Rosalie explained evenly. "The magic encasing you is slightly weaker from the outside, so I was able to bend it to my will for a few moments. All I had to do then was activate a simple transportation spell."

Loki was quite impressed. Even if the walls were weaker from the outside of his cell, one's magic had to be very strong in order to break through the enchantment Thor had placed upon Loki's prison. The fact that this said magic was a young girl's was even more intriguing and shocking. The sorcerer examined the cake more thoroughly and was stunned to see that the cake's composition was still in tact upon its teleportation from Rosalie's hands to his own. This as well was quite a pleasant surprise. Not many could accomplish the feat of transporting a tangible item to another completely in tact, let alone across a high security barrier. Loki also couldn't help but notice a tiny candle plugged into the very center of the cupcake, standing tall and proud against the creamy white moisture of the cake and icing.

"You can perform simple magic within your cell, yes?" Rose prompted, excitement evident in her tone. The sorcerer nodded slowly in response, still not quite sure what the intelligent blonde was getting at. "Light it," Rose suggested simply with a shrug of her shoulders. With a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips, Loki complied and lit the candle with a bright flame by a flick of his wrist. Rose's mouth spread into a heartfelt grin, satisfied to see her dear friend holding the complete entirety of her gift to him.

Loki was deeply touched by the gift, though he wondered what had brought it on. "This is very sweet of you, Rose, but what is the occasion?"

Rosalie smiled brightly at the sorcerer and said, "It is my Name Day!" Loki's smile fell slightly, though he did his best to recover it. Rosie had not even told him that her Name Day was looming. If she had, the sorcerer would have…Loki choked on the sudden sadness and anger that shot through his heart as he realized that even if he had known, he could have done nothing. He had nothing to give the child. He cursed his prison, and he cursed himself for committing the crimes that had landed him within its iron bars. He wanted to be able to shower the princess with gifts on her ninth Name Day, and honestly, he thought, on every Name Day that would follow, and yet, he would spend eternity in this dark, damp place, unable to provide anything other than his time. He hoped it would be enough.

"Oh, Rosalie," Loki sighed sadly. "Why did you not tell me before?"

"I wanted to surprise you!" Rose responded happily, her excitement untroubled despite the sorcerer's obvious disappointment.

"Surprise me?" Loki asked. "Why surprise me when it is your Name Day?"

"Because surprises always bring me joy, and I thought a surprise would do so for you as well. I want you to be happy. I wanted to share this day with you," Rose told him as simply as if they had been discussing the weather. Loki's eyes stung fiercely with the effort to keep his tears at bay. Every day, he loved this child more and more, and what the young princess did not know was that Loki's happiness had no need of surprises or goodies. The warlock's happiness was wrapped up in the beautiful, bubbly bundle that was the precious child standing sweetly before him.

"Now you have to make a wish," the princess prompted the sorcerer, hoping to share some of the joy of her special day with her friend.

"Very well," Loki whispered, though he knew no wish had ever or would ever be granted for him. He had stopped believing in wishes long ago when betrayal and deception had clouded the years he had once believed to be the golden years of his life. He appeased Rose, though, closing his eyes and blowing the small flame to smoke, and just the air brushed past his lips, a wish, unbidden, rose in his mind. I wish for Rosalie to always be happy. It was the most unselfish wish the God of Mischief had ever made, and it warmed his body from the inside out.

The ocean blue eyes of the princess gleamed in satisfaction. "There!" she replied happily. "Now, perhaps your wished will be granted one day."

"I wouldn't count on it," Loki dismissed. He had been through too many disappointments in his lifetime to have even a sliver of hope for his wishes to be granted, although in this particular case he prayed he was mistaken.

"I suppose one shouldn't," Rosalie agreed sadly. "Mother always insists that I make a wish on my every Name Day, but I have refused to do so every year until today."

This caught Loki's attention, and he tilted his head slightly in perplexion, wondering what the girl had wished for.

"May I ask what you wished for?"

Rose nodded against her chest before she lifted her head to meet the sorcerer's gaze. "I wished for your freedom, for your second chance."

At this, Loki made no attempt to hide his emotions. His tears sprung forcefully forth, staining his cheeks with the wet evidence of his love for the only person who had ever loved him beyond his past and beyond his pain.

"Why would you do that?" Loki asked in an astounded whisper.

"Because your friendship means more to me than anything," Rose answered with no hesitation.

Loki swallowed thickly, still consumed in a vortex of emotions. "I wish I had something to offer you," he admitted quietly. "I wish I could do something for you. I would if I were not a prisoner to this miserable cage."

Rosalie's eyebrows furrowed at the sorcerer's confession. "Don't you see that your friendship is more than I could ever ask for? You offer more by being my most trusted friend than one would by showering me with needless gifts. I appreciate you more than you'll ever know. This is only but a small token of my gratitude."

Loki's heart melted in his chest at the young girl's mature words. It was all he ever wanted to hear and more. If not for the confounded cell he was enclosed in, Loki would have embraced his niece right then and there, never releasing her from his grasp. Never letting her go.

"Happy Name Day, darling," Loki whispered through his tears, cupping the small cake in his hand as if it was a precious gem.


	10. Chapter 10

_**Author's Note: This one is kind of different than the rest, but it will become important later on. Hope you enjoy the slight change in pace! **_

Rosalie had just been excused from her daily lessons, for which she was immensely grateful. It gave her more time to scour the royal library in search of books to research ways to further exemplify her magic and knowledge of high security held within the palace. For the past few weeks, Rose had reverently devoured book after book, frantically searching for ways to release her dear friend from his captivity. Once she had discovered that she indeed possessed the power to materialize objects from one side of the prison's barrier to the other, she had become determined to find a way to break the sorcerer out of his cell.

Every day after her lessons, she spent endless hours in the library, searching for even a hint as to the type of magic used to contain the vilest of criminals in the royal dungeons. She spent so much time in the library that her parents were beginning to grow suspicious as to what would intrigue their curious princess to the extent that she wouldn't leave the confines her new haven. However, Rosalie took quick notice of this, and began hauling stacks of books to her room to hide amongst her belongings as to not perturb her mother and father any more than necessary.

On this day, however, the King and Queen were holding council, which allowed Rosalie free reign of the library without the prodding eyes of her parents deterring her from her mission. Rose had set herself to a task, and she wasn't about to give up on her goal. Her dearest friend would be set free by her own hands if she had anything to say about it. The sorcerer had done so much for her, so it was only fair for Rose to do the same.

Rose's nose was stuck in a book regarding the history of dark magic when she felt the presence of another at her back, reading over her shoulder. Her heart pounded against her chest and her face flushed when she realized that the book in which she was consumed was one of the books from the restricted section of the library. All of the books forbidden from Rosalie's eyes to behold were place amongst the higher shelves, well out of the small child's grasp. However, Rose had found a way the circumvent the system so to speak. On a night when she'd been unable to sleep, consumed by thoughts of her beloved sorcerer, she had learned to levitate various objects strewn about her room. It had filled Rosalie with newfound hope, and gave her the perseverance to continue in her personal, private studies. She had used her newly found power to retrieve many books restricted to her. But now, with a stranger looming over her shoulder, Rose was terrified that that said stranger would recognize the arcane content of the book.

"That's a very interesting choice of reading," a man spoke with an amused smirk from behind Rosalie. She instantly recognized the voice.

"Heimdall?" she questioned, turning around to confirm her assumption.

The tall, dark, statuesque form of Heimdall indeed stood over the princess, his face drawn together with a stern softness. "Good afternoon, princess," Heimdall greeted with a gleam in his hypnotic amber eyes. "I apologize if I startled you."

"Oh no, it's quite alright," Rosalie replied politely, turning in her chair to fully face the gatekeeper of the nine realms. "Are you here for the royal council?" She decided to indulge in some small talk as to divert attention away from her precarious studies.

"I am," Heimdall informed shortly, offering no other explanation as to his presence in the library.

"Do you not know where it is?" Rosalie prodded with a furrowed brow of concern. "I could take you to it if need be."

The gatekeeper chuckled lightly, his shoulders shaking slightly up and down being the only indication of his laughter. Heimdall truly was impressed at the girl's maturity. Although she was only nine, she had a way about people that was very rare, even in the most well grown and intelligent of Asgardian children. What she lacked, however, was a sense of worldly knowledge. Rosalie was a completely innocent child, gullible, trusting and naive. Something of which Heimdall hoped to address in this very moment.

"That's quite alright, princess. I know where the King and Queen hold council. I was hoping to have a few words with you if you'll permit it. May I?" Heimdall gestured to a chair across from Rosalie, a slight smile planted across his features in as warm an invitation as he could muster, considering the reason for his visit to the young, blue eyed princess.

Rose nodded cautiously, wary of the gatekeeper who was rumored to hear and see all. The possibility of this terrified the young princess. If it were true, then Heimdall would have knowledge of Rose's secret visits to the Evil Sorcerer. And if that be the case, then Heimdall had the power to cease Rose's visitations to her dearest friend. All it would take was a simple word to her father, and Rosalie would be forbidden from ever seeing the sorcerer again. Rose suddenly felt nauseous at the thought as the gatekeeper took a seat across from the wild haired princess.

"May I inquire as to what this is about?" Rose asked shakily, unable to ease her fragile nerves.

"You have been practicing magic frequently now more than ever," Heimdall cut straight to the throat, not willing to chatter in fruitless conversation, instead getting straight to the point. "And I assume you do so in order to free your friend in the dungeons."

Rosalie felt her face drain of all color to a chalk white. Her mouth dried and her throat closed up, panic and alarm taking over every sense within her tiny body. Her limbs felt weak, and her heart clenched in a mixture of fear and sorrow, knowing that this was it. There would no longer be any late night endeavors to visit the sorcerer of whom she had grown so close. "So you do know," she croaked weakly.

"Of course I know, princess," the gatekeeper replied calmly, as to not make Rose feel as if this was an affronted confrontation. He merely wished to advise the girl. "I see all."

"Then go ahead," Rosalie sighed shakily, allowing her neck to go slack, her chin now buried in her chest, feeling her eyes fill to the brim with unshed tears, tears that were due to fall any moment. "Tell my father."

"On the contrary, child, that is the exact opposite of what I want to do."

Rosalie's head snapped up in surprise, and a shot of hope rippled throughout her body. "What?" she breathed. Had her ears deceived her? "Aren't you sworn to obey my father and inform him of any dangers to Asgard?"

"I am," Heimdall agreed confidently. "But I don't desire to inform the king of your recent mischievous ways, Rosalie," he repeated, a wry smile tugging at the corners of his lips at the girl's reaction of relief. "Your visits to the sorcerer don't concern me. However, I do wish to warn you."

"Warn me of what?" Rosalie asked confusedly, still very much relieved that the gatekeeper was willing to keep her secret to himself.

Heimdall paused for a moment to be sure that he had the princess's full, undivided attention. Her wide, blue eyes were glued to his amber orbs, curious and full of bright life. "You need to be careful of the magic you choose to practice," he spoke in such a tone that informed Rose just how serious he was. "You have the capability to perform great, powerful magic. As you grow into your magic, not much will be out of your range to perform. This can become very dangerous. And I only but caution you to refrain from consuming your thoughts and soul in the tiring engagement of enchantments. There is a reason that some magic is considered dark."

Rosalie listened to the wisdom of the gatekeeper intently. She understood what he was trying to convey. She knew that certain spells had the capability to taint even the purest of hearts, sending them down the spiraling path of insanity and ultimate woe. From what she'd gathered of the sorcerer, this is what had happened to him. The eminent desire of control, power, success and domination had overtaken him, consuming his heart and soul, mind and body. Many a times had the sorcerer cautioned the young princess against delving too deeply in the more complex magical endeavors, for the more a magician conquered, the greater the insatiable thirst for more was not easily quenched. So far, Rose had kept a clear distinction of what magic was necessary and what was not. Yet, here was the gatekeeper still warning the princess of the hazardous and risky dangers of learning magic.

"I hear you, good sir," Rosalie nodded her head in approval to the man's words. "And I appreciate your concern, but I am not planning to become a dark sorcerer. There is no need to worry."

"Of course not, Rose," Heimdall bowed his head slightly. "Just a word of caution, I assure you." Heimdall stared at the strawberry blonde, his amber gaze staring into her very soul. He knew the innocence of the exuberant blonde lingered. But there had been the slightest of changes in regards to her maturity and mannerisms ever since she had first encountered the infamous Loki. It was almost as if the child had adopted a part of Loki in her very essence. There were times when her stare reflected the mischievous stare of the God of Mischief. Where the girl's statements and comments were lacquered in the same hint of sarcasm that only Loki ever used. It was quite unnerving to think that Loki had made such an impact upon the princess.

"If I might make a suggestion," Heimdall continued, reaching across to grasp hold of the book Rosalie had consumed herself in. "Perhaps your studies would be better served in a more favorable subject matter."

Rose bit her bottom lip in disapproval, but nodded reluctantly, knowing that it would prove ill to argue with the gatekeeper. To this, Heimdall shut the book with a soft thud and placed in upon the edge of the mahogany table gently.

"Thank you for your council, Princess Rosalie, but I must be going. Although, please heed my words. The varying degrees of magic can be most destructive."

"I understand," Rosalie said with full confidence and sincerity. "I will."

Heimdall nodded his approval, smiled slightly, then departed the library. Once Rose was sure he was out of earshot, she released a large sigh. Although she knew the gatekeeper meant well and was only looking out for her on behalf of the king, she gained but one thing from the entire conversation.

Rosalie had the capability to perform great, powerful magic. If Heimdall's words rang true, then perhaps there was some hope for the sorcerer. Perhaps, one day, she would be able to set him free from his eternal incarceration.


	11. Chapter 11

**_Author's Note: I know many of you have questions, and I swear a lot of them will be answered within the next few chapters! Just bear with me! Again, thank you for the continued support! I really appreciate you guys! Like... Alot! You have no idea! Anyways... Onward! _**

Rose crept through the halls of the West Wing, the portion of the castle that had always been primarily forbidden to her. She knew many of the rooms were unused and many others were merely used for storage, but her mother had always warned that much of what was stored within the West Wing of the castle was in vast disarray and Rosalie could easily become lost or hurt; however, the young princess, having broken the rule of entering the forbidden corridor and discovering that she quite liked what she had found as a result, decided that she would like to investigate the rest of the West Wing as well. Perhaps she would find a great many treasures hidden there. So, it was a day of adventure for the child once her lessons had concluded.

Thus far, though, she had disappointingly come across only dusty, barren rooms or even dustier rooms filled with old trinkets, broken shelves and furniture, and the princess's long-forgotten baby toys. Rose was just about to abandon her latest adventure as it had been purely fruitless and honestly, quite a bore, when as she slinked around a corner at the far end of highest floor of the West Wing, something out of the ordinary caught her eye.

A large, solid black door stood at the end of the corridor, a door much larger than the others she had come across in this wing of the castle, and none of the other doors had been as dark. In fact, Rose could not recall a single other black door in the entire castle, most of them painted in brilliant golds, warm tans and browns, or even bronze hues as her own chamber door was. Finally, the princess had found something worthy of inspecting to appease her adventurous and curious mind.

After glancing around to ensure that no guards were about, the strawberry blonde sprinted to the curious door, standing as high on her toes as possible to reach the handle before pushing with all her might against the thick wood. The effort was exhausting, the great door groaning its disapproval, but she finally managed to push it just enough to slip her tiny body through the slim crack she had made.

Rose's gasp echoed loudly around the room as she stared at countless volumes of dusty, worn, weathered objects scattered about the dark room. Upon closer inspection, she saw that they were books. Everywhere she turned, the princess was surrounded by books, both large and small, simple as well as ornate; everything from pocket and hand sized books to books larger than her own torso. It was a truly fascinating sight. It nearly made her dizzy.

The princess practically glided throughout the room, still in awe. She idly pilfered through a few of the books and instantly recognized the content of the books based on the few titles she deciphered. They all regarded magic, and all were titles of which her mother and father wouldn't approve of her reading. Books of dark magic, white magic, neutral magic, healing magic, destructive magic... the list went on and on. Rosalie then found herself wondering what in the world these books were doing in this room. Rose continued to ponder the possibilities as she made her way through the maze of book stacks, picking up the smaller ones as she went, running her hands over the designs of the leather bound covers.

The princess squeaked loudly as a small book whose spine was literally falling apart slipped from her grasp, falling quickly to the stone floor. She helplessly watched it descend, knowing in her heart that the book would fall apart upon impact. Rose breathed a heavy sigh as the book made contact with the floor, thudding loudly, its pages fluttering all across the surface of the stone floor. With a stifled groan, Rose swooped down to scoop up the withered, brown pages of the book, and as she did, something else captured her attention.

While squatted, Rosalie realized she could see through a very slim space, just big enough for her to crawl through, between two grand mirrors along the back wall of the room, and while her line of sight was limited to that which was close to the ground, she could still make out splashes of color adorning something behind one of the mirrors. Ever the curious one, the princess simply had to investigate.

The young blonde crawled through the tight space into the small open area behind the cluster of large mirrors. She quickly realized that the splash of color she had seen had been from the only exposed and visible corner of a massive painting encased in a heavy, ornate, golden frame and leaning against the wall, hidden by the pair of mirrors. The painting was mostly covered by a large, dirty, white sheet, so Rose could only make out a fraction of the image, what appeared to be part of a man's cape. The princess reached forward and wrapped two tiny fistfuls in the sheet, feeling the years of gathered dust coat her fingers and palms, and tugged with all her might.

The sheet came down in a raining cloud of dust and filth, sending young Rosalie into a fit of sputtering and coughing. She waved her hands in front of her face to clear the air as her coughing finally settled, and slowly the massive portrait came into view. Rosalie gasped so forcefully and so loudly that she accidentally sucked in another large dose of what dust still remained in the air, spurring on another fit of coughing though she never took her eyes from her discovery, staring long and hard at the picture before her.

There, painted in gloriously beautiful detail and dressed in a magnificent ensemble of leather, metal and velvet green and gold armor was her sorcerer. Rose was transfixed by the image of her closest friend painted grandly before her, his expression serene and less tortured than Rosalie was used to seeing in his emerald eyes. The sorcerer looked just a bit younger than he was now, and just as she began to wonder as to why her father would have a portrait of the Evil Sorcerer, she actually tore her eyes from the pale man's face and noticed the other three people portrayed in the painting. Standing just behind and to the right of the sorcerer was an elder man that Rose immediately recognized as her father's father, Rose's grandfather, the Allfather, Odin. To his right stood a woman that she'd only ever heard about from her father. She had seen several paintings of the former Queen Frigga throughout the castle. She was quite breathtaking and beautiful, holding a regal, composed stature that Rose's mother didn't quite match. Finally, standing to the left of the slightly younger sorcerer was an easily recognized man, smiling brightly and boldly with a slightly prideful stare, with golden hair and ocean blue eyes. This was none other than Thor, Rose's father.

The princess was deeply confused and conflicted by the image, and then she read the three words scrawled just above the artist's signature in the bottom right-hand corner of the painting. The Royal Family.

Rosalie's vision blurred, the colors of the portrait blending before her eyes as a wave of dizziness took over. She swayed on her feet, momentarily teetering on the edge of consciousness as her brain rapidly fit together the many puzzle pieces she had somehow failed to overlook prior to now.

Her dearest friend, the Evil Sorcerer, was the one and only Loki of her stories and of her dreams. That man, trapped in the dungeons beneath her family's palace, that man whom Rose had so grown to love, was none other than her estranged uncle, the infamous God of Mischief.


	12. Chapter 12

_**Author's Note: I know. Finally, right? Well, here it is! Hope it doesn't disappoint! This should explain one particular question I've been getting, but the deeper, more exciting answers will be given in the next few chapters. So enjoy the calm while it lasts. Things are about to get really rocky. **_

Golden curls bounced wildly atop tensed shoulders as the young princess Rosalie sprinted through the forbidden corridor in a panic, taking the stairs as quickly as her short legs would allow. Her heart pounded fiercely in her chest as her breaths, fast and ragged, screamed through her lungs like great starbursts of energy and fire. Her head, still spinning from the greatest revelation of her life thus far, swam with questions, with concerns, with excitement, and with every colorful emotion a child could ever possibly experience.

She could not shake the image of the painting, of the handsome raven haired man in the green and gold armor. The colors, the lines, the angles, and that stunning, yet saddened, emerald gaze all danced before her eyes as if she were still standing in the room of books, gazing upon the hidden portrait. The sorcerer, untouched by time, mesmerized the princess both in the portrait of his past as well as in the present. Her sorcerer, her friend, her confidant was the very man she had dreamed of for as long as the child could remember, the very man whose stories she studied and cherished so devoutly—the God of Mischief, the traitor of Asgard, her Loki.

Rosalie was both thrilled to have discovered truth as well as disappointed in herself for not having realized or even suspected sooner. She wondered how she could have been so blind before when it all touched her now with such clarity. Furthermore, she wondered why the sorcerer, knowing of Rosalie's fascination with the God of Mischief, would choose to keep such truth a secret from the princess, but Rose's trust in the sorcerer was absolute. She never questioned his advice or his choices. She simply accepted the will and the desires of her friend, wanting only to please the man.

In fact, only once in the entirety of the six months in which the child had been visiting the sorcerer had she actually asked the man his name. The two had shared a long, contemplating look, each studying the other, Rosalie out of curiosity, and Loki, out of concern. Finally, the sorcerer had answered the princess, saying, "When you are ready, you will know." Rose had wanted to push the issue, but instead, she let it fall, swallowing her curiosity out of respect for her sorcerer, and the topic of the pale, dark haired man's name never came up again.

Scorching blue flames danced in Rosalie's eyes as they locked upon her target. She ran toward the magical cell she had grown to loathe, her quickened steps splashing loudly atop the dungeon floor, startling Loki as the young girl stopped several feet from the glowing, gold magical barrier of the sorcerer's cell. She stood just beneath the nearest torch, the flickering light casting an almost ethereal glow around the girl. Loki moved quickly to the walls of his cell as the light of the torch made prominent the burning intensity of the princess's gaze and the shimmering tear tracks that striped Rosalie's fair cheeks from her delicate lashes to her dimpled chin so like her father's.

Loki was afraid to speak or even move. He had never seen the child so shaken, so magnificently present. It was as if the entire room faded around her until all that remained was the glowing aura that haloed the reddish golden-haired girl. It was obvious to the sorcerer by Rose's intensity that something of great magnitude had occurred, and he was not entirely sure he wanted to know just what that something was.

Loki slowly lowered himself to his knees, his gaze locking with Rosalie's as they became eye-level with one another. The sorcerer's heart pounded madly in his chest, matching the rhythmic panic of the princess's own pulse, and he wondered if Rose could hear the wild, erratic beat as the warlock's most vital organ threatened the confines of his ribcage. It would surely rip from his flesh at any minute. He held his breath, waiting for something, anything to happen, wondering if he should speak or if he should remain silent, wondering worriedly what had happened to his princess. Was she frightened? Worried? Saddened? Or perhaps, happy?

The fallen prince was jolted, though, from the raging storm of thoughts and emotions raining down upon his heart and mind as the child took a small, cautious, yet determined step forward. That step was then followed by another, then another, and another, until the girl was standing just in front of the cell with her body almost pressed heavily against the magical wall that had always and would always separate the two. He could practically feel Rose's tiny, ragged breaths upon his cheeks as the girl stared at him wide-eyed, silent tears still leaking steadily from those stunning, crystal blue orbs. Loki wondered if the girl was even aware that she was crying. She seemed so present and yet so far away. It was unsettling, and then Rosalie surprised him by speaking, the young girl's voice a breathless whisper.

"May I try something?"

Loki was unsure of what to say, of what Rosalie even meant by that question. He was so startled and uncertain of this entire encounter that he was unable to even put voice to words or words to voice. So, instead, he painfully swallowed the massive lump in his throat and nodded to the girl.

A slender, delicate, and pale arm reached shakily towards the wall of golden magic encasing Loki in his eternal prison, extending towards the raven haired man. Loki watched Rosalie's face, and studied her gaze until Rose gasped loudly and her eyes snapped shut, pain evident on her features.

Loki's concerned expression snapped to worry in less than a second, and he finally was able to think coherently. "Stop!" his voice shook in apprehension. "I know what you're thinking. Please don't try it."

Rosalie momentarily withdrew her hand from the electrifying wall of Loki's cell, brows furrowed in determination. "Why not?" she asked indignantly.

"Because you will hurt yourself," Loki replied evenly, appeasing to the princess through the melting look in his eyes. "Besides, even if you were able to cross the barrier, there's no guarantee you will be able to escape."

Rose frowned deeply at this. "Who says I want to escape?"

Loki blinked at the child's statement. "I would want you to escape," he breathed sincerely. "I would never wish upon you the same fate in which I lie."

"Then perhaps I could get us both out," Rose said seriously, her stare never diverting from Loki's.

"Perhaps you could," the sorcerer admitted with a small smirk. "But I'm not willing to run the risk."

Rose bit her bottom lip, her gaze hardening with something on the verge of determination and defiance. "Okay," she whispered in acceptance. "I will obey your wish. But I still want to try something."

Rosalie reached out her hand to the wall again, this time not so focused on Loki but on the magical barrier itself. Her arm trembled, as if under grievous amounts of strain, and her eyes narrowed dangerously. Loki watched in fascination as the small child cautiously, centimeter by centimeter, closed the gap between her palm and the wall. When she looked but a hair away from coming in contact with the electrifying barrier, the sorcerer spoke a very tender, "Careful." But Rose didn't listen, barely even hearing Loki's caution. Instead, she continued onward until her hand came in full contact with the magic of the barrier.

The gold veining that pulsated about the wall pooled around the impression Rose's hand made, and she cringed lightly as a few weak shocks zapped her palm. After a few moments, her tense form relaxed, and she grinned triumphantly.

"Touch it," she urged the sorcerer, a mad smile still gracing her features.

"Does it not hurt you, Rose?" Loki asked in astonishment, hesitantly reaching his own hand out to press against the wall atop the impression of the small girl's.

"A little," she admitted with a small shrug. "But it's not that bad. I've redirected the electric currents of the wall's defense, so all that's left is a slight shock."

Right as she said this, Loki's hand touched the wall, and he too cringed slightly at the small shock that sent through his nerves. But after the feeling subsided, Loki was able to marvel at the inconceivable, staggering, divine moment that Rosalie had single handedly created. He could feel Rosalie's small hand against his own, despite the thin wall between them. Rose must have felt his touch too, for the child's smile brightened so gloriously with unshed tears that Loki felt tears of his own blur his vision as a beautiful smile graced his features. Their hands fit together so perfectly and harmoniously that despite the disparaging sizes, the pair felt intertwined, interwoven, as one.

Rosalie closed her eyes, a thin stream of tears tainting her cheeks, her lashes damp at the moisture that pricked her vision. She sensed the deep pair of swirling green vortexes that stared at her so intently. She related the beautiful orbs to the hidden portrait she'd discovered, suddenly reminded as to why she was there in the first place. She blinked open her eyes as new tears spilled from her lids and her gaze locked onto the imprisoned man's tormented stare.

"It is you," the blonde child whispered, a brilliant, heart-stopping smile breaking through her tears as she pressed her palm to the wall with more pressure, as if to close whatever gap was between their hands, "…Loki."

The God of Mischief's gasp echoed throughout the darkened dungeon upon hearing his name whisper across his princess's lips, his own hand pressing towards the princess's without thought. He wanted nothing more but to pull the girl as close as possible as they shared broken, yet beautifully understanding smiles.

Neither the fallen prince nor the princess noticed the brief burning sensation that seared the flesh on both of their right shoulder blades as they stared at each other, longing to hold one another, a magic born within the recognition of souls.


	13. Chapter 13

_**Author's Note: Quick little clarification before I start, but we are jumping ahead by two years in this chapter. To get all the content I want to eventually post up, there is no way I'm going through every single year, so I'm sorry if this disappoints anyone! However, the fun is just beginning. Sorry for the wait! Again, I must be starting to sound like a broken record, but THANK YOU to everyone who has reviewed, favorited and followed this story! Hope you enjoy! **_

Eleven-year-old Rose sat quietly at a small round table in the palace library, tapping the tip of her quill rhythmically as her mind wandered, the droning voice of her instructor fading to a muffled buzz in the background. Her mother, the reigning queen, sat attentively by her side as if the instructor's words were some fascinating tale rather than the overly told, painfully dull lesson that the words actually composed.

_Loki?_ Rosalie mentally called out to her friend with her thoughts. The response, as usual, was immediate.

_Yes, darling?_ Loki's smooth, sultry voice drifted through Rosalie's mind in a comforting hum and the princess smiled. Shortly after Rose had discovered the Evil Sorcerer's true identity just two short years prior, both had been startled to discover a strange, new connection between them. Since that one brief contact shared in the wake of newfound recognition, the fallen prince and the princess had somehow become able to communicate telepathically.

It had happened in the following evening as Rose's mother had lain the girl down to sleep. As much as the princess had wanted to visit her most precious friend again that night, the young strawberry blonde was simply exhausted from a long day executed after having little rest the night before, too wired from her own excitement. So, as Rosalie's eyelids fluttered with the weight of oncoming slumber, she thought of the raven haired man, her mind whispering two simple words. _Goodnight, Loki._

Loki's eyes had snapped open where he lay atop his prison cot, his head whipping around in search of the princess as he had only just heard the girl's voice loud and clear as if Rose had been down in the dungeon with him. Seeing no evidence of the girl's presence, though, he took a deep breath and relaxed, returning to lie atop his cot once more. He closed his green eyes and thought, _Goodnight, Rose,_ as he reached for slumber.

Several floors above the sorcerer, the young princess had immediately jolted from the infancy of her slumber, crystal eyes popping open to search her own chamber for the sorcerer whose voice had sounded, loud and clear, to the girl. Rosalie crawled from her bed and padded across to her chamber door to peek into the hallway before turning back to inspect her chamber, seeking the source of the voice she had heard. When she found no one, she climbed back into her bed, a little shaken, and unbidden, another thought snapped into her mind. _Has Loki escaped his cell?_

Loki, thinking he surely must be dreaming, responded without concern, snorting his laughter before thinking,_ If only._ Rosalie gasped loudly before attempting to deliberately call out to the sorcerer with her mind, though her eyes continued to dart madly around her chamber. _Loki? Can you…can you hear me?_ She waited for the man to answer with a simple yes or no, but after only a beat, she heard Loki's mentally whispered words of shock as the raven haired man had frantically jumped from early slumber in realization that he was not, in fact, dreaming, and thought, _Oh gods._

Many times since their discovery, Rosalie had questioned Loki about the telepathic connection and yet, the sorcerer had no answers to give her, and if he did have answers, he certainly had been keeping tight-lipped about them. Loki, though, truthfully had no explanation. For all the magic he once possessed and all the magical knowledge that still existed in his mind, he could not fathom how this connection with the princess had come to be. Even those connected by the most powerful magic of all, were not psychically bound; at least, Loki had never heard of such an occurrence, and thank gods for that, he thought.

In addition to the newly found telepathic communication the two shared, Loki and Rose had also noticed something of strange origin. Neither had ever mentioned it to the other, for they felt it wasn't of great importance, but both Rosalie and Loki had taken a keen interest into a small pale ring of light skin on each's respective right shoulder blade. Rose had first noticed this strange marking on her shoulder a few nights after she'd been revealed the truth to Loki's identity. She'd been getting ready to bathe in her nightly bath when she'd seen the reflection of the ring of discoloration on her shoulder. It was even paler than her pale skin. Almost white and translucent against the nimble, lithe muscles of her shoulder blade. She had frowned in confusion, but dismissed it soon after a palace servant had entered the bathroom to draw her water. Loki didn't quite know when he'd noticed the very same ring on his right shoulder blade, but he knew it was there. White, pale, out of place and translucent.

_What are you doing?_ Rosalie mentally asked the former prince as she continued to drown out her instructor's voice with the melodic, trance-inducing tapping of her quill against the wooden tabletop.

_Rose_, Loki sighed and the princess smiled as she could hear the mocking exasperation in the man's voice, _I am locked in a magical cell. I am doing nothing._

_Right,_ Rosalie replied. _I am terribly bored._

_Where are you?_ Loki wondered.

_I am in lesson_, Rose told him. _My instructor is lecturing on the history of our kingdom once again._ Loki smiled upon hearing that. He knew how much Rosalie hated the repetitive lessons on the history of the Asgard, having endured enough of them to have the entire history memorized practically verbatim. Loki commended the girl for her patience as he, himself, would surely have strangled the instructor by now, if for nothing else but to forcefully inspire a change of subject.

Rose's maturity continued to surprise him the more time passed. It seemed the young princess had intellectually and mentally aged a decade in only two years. It completely bewildered the sorcerer, but more than Rosalie's maturity surprised her, it was the girl's unwavering trust in and affection for the fallen prince that most shocked and confused him. Even after learning Loki's true identity, Rose's love of the sorcerer never faltered, despite her knowledge of the many wicked acts he had committed, many of those deeds acted upon the princess's own father. As much as the strawberry blonde's open and accepting heart befuddled him, though, Loki dared not question it. He had been so starved for affection and acceptance for so terribly long that he could do nothing but drink Rose's offering in eagerly, with reverence and gratitude.

_I miss you._ Rose's voice rang in the fallen prince's head again, though it had barely been more than a whisper. Loki's heart warmed exponentially. It had been nearly two months since Rosalie had come to visit him in the dungeons, and the separation was draining them both emotionally. It was because of this that both the princess and the fallen prince thanked whatever higher being that watched over then frequently for their precious ability to communicate psychically.

Thor had become an overbearing fatherly wedge between the two, and though he still had no knowledge of Rosalie's visits with Loki and certainly none of their telepathic connection, he had grown greatly suspicious of his daughter's curious behavior over the course of the last two years—the constant exhaustion as if she were up most nights (which, of course, she was), the way the blonde's head would snap to attention at any mention of the God of Mischief or the Evil Sorcerer, but most particularly of magic in general, and the like. Not only that, but Thor had noticed, despite Loki's superb acting abilities and unfailing disdain for the reigning king, that the raven haired warlock seemed noticeably more upbeat, less defeated than before, and this worried him endlessly.

As such, Rose began to notice that she was being followed often by a guard or even a pair of guards, many of her favorite secret passageways had been sealed off without explanation, and Jane had been spending as much time with her daughter as possible, even sitting in on all her lessons while King Thor handled most of the politics of running the realm. Therefore, both Rosalie and Loki had agreed that it was best to greatly limit their visits, though they maintained constant contact mentally, speaking every day without fail.

_And I you, darling, but it is for the best_, Loki responded sadly, though she could not wipe the smile from his face. He never would have dreamed that she could have such a wonderful friendship with anyone, let alone the daughter of the man he most despised. Loki could practically feel Rose's frown, though, upon being reminded that they could not see one another. He laughed as he spoke telepathically to the red hued blonde. _Try not to frown so, Rosalie. Your mother will surely assume you are under the influence of dark magic as no lesson of this grand kingdom could ever induce such a reaction._

Rose smiled brightly at Loki's teasing. The raven haired man had grown much more comfortable, being more open and more himself than ever since the princess had discovered his identity. _Much better, darling_, Loki continued. _Your smile is bright and beautiful even when I can see it only inside my mind._

The princess longed desperately to see her friend. Her mother's presence as well as her father's constant spying and questioning had grown nearly to the point of suffocation and Rosalie ached for the freedom of the ease and comfort with which she could always simply spend time with Loki, sharing stories and unburdened conversation. The blonde closed her eyes and called forth the image of the dungeon, of Loki's magical cell, and finally, of the sorcerer himself. She imagined herself there, the desire to see her friend filling her every cell, and before she could even open her eyes or realize what was happening, she heard her mother let out a high-pitched yelp.

Rose snapped open her eyes just as a thick accumulation of shining gold magic engulfed her body and in an instant, the library, her mother, and her instructor were gone as the curious sensation of traveling through time and space filtered into her body, making Rosalie's blood buzz electrically in her veins, and then suddenly she was on solid ground again. The gold magic twinkled around her young body before dissipating and disappearing into the air like vapor, and there, before her was a wide-eyed Loki, staring in bewilderment at the young blonde. But this time, it wasn't from behind gold walls equivalent to prison bars. This time, Rosalie had crossed the barrier, and was but a few inches from the man she'd longed to embrace for the past two years.


	14. Chapter 14

_**Author's Note: You guys really are great! I was astounded by the number of reviews I got on the last chapter! And over 100 reviews total... Wow! So, as a thank you, I made this my longest chapter yet. It sort of sets the tone for the direction in which this story is heading. I hope it doesn't disappoint! **_

Both Rose and Loki stood shell-shocked at what had just occurred, Loki stunned into silence as he studied the young strawberry blonde who had so obviously just performed magic. It was the first time the two had ever been on the same side of the magical wall that held Loki in his eternal prison. Rose was quite the captivating sight from behind the slight distortion of the wall of magic, but she was even more mesmerizing close up. Throw that in with the fact that the pair hadn't seen each other in two months, and it was easy to see why Loki was left nearly breathless. The princess had changed so much in those two months alone, becoming more mature in the face, coming to resemble her mother more than her father. She looked even more beautiful than he remembered. Rosalie must have thought the same as Loki, for a wide, satisfied grin lighted up her features. Before he could return the gesture, Rosalie launched herself at the sorcerer, holding on tightly to his torso, wrapping him into an embrace. Loki was momentarily stunned, but quickly recovered from the sudden gesture, and wrapped his own arms around the small princess, releasing a relieved sigh and smiling serenely into her strawberry blonde curls.

He warmed exponentially at the gentle, heartfelt contact. The pair had never once felt the other's skin upon their own. Not once throughout their friendship had they embraced or even truly touched. Loki cradled the back of Rosalie's head, holding her close. He closed his eyes, relishing the feeling of being held by Rose, her arms squeezing his torso as if it was the last time she would ever see him.

"It's good to see you too, darling," Loki chuckled lightly. But the raven haired sorcerer quickly collected himself as realization of what would happen next slammed into his brain, sending waves of discomfort and nausea shooting straight to his gut. Thor was to be arriving for his weekly visit shortly. And if Loki knew Thor, and oh how he knew him, the reigning king would be appearing any moment, now with a raging vengeance shortly upon arrival.

"Loki, what has happened?" Rose asked nervously, regrettably withdrawing from the man's embrace, though the fallen prince heard the excitement lacing the blonde's tone. "Was that…Have I crossed the barrier with my magic? Or is this a dream?"

"Rose," Loki said calmly, yet his tone was grave, capturing the princess's attention with its solemnity. "You must leave now. You must transport yourself elsewhere, otherwise your father—"

"Rosalie?" a frantic, hysterical voice interrupted the sorcerer. Rose felt her face pale and drain of color when she realized that that said person was her mother. "Rose?! Where are you?!"

Rosalie remained silent, her eyes wide in fear and heart rate skyrocketing while she studied the eerily pensive look on Loki's face. He looked very accepting and resolved, and it frightened Rose to see him look so defeated.

_I must have accidentally taken her with me_, Rose informed with a panicked tone. _Loki, what do I do?_ Rose appealed to the God of Mischief with the evidence of fear in her sparkling blue eyes. _Should I hide?_

Loki studied the princess with a pained expression on his face. _Inform your mother of where you are._

"What?" Rose hissed in great surprise, forgetting momentarily that her mother was lurking around the corner, still calling for her. Rosalie quickly clapped her hands over her mouth when she realized how loudly her voice echoed about the stone walls of the prison.

"Rosalie?" Jane called out shortly after hearing her daughter's voice, and Rose cringed. "Rose, sweetheart. Is that you? Please, answer me darling."

Rose looked to Loki one last time for confirmation, to which he bowed his head. Rosalie gulped and nodded, not at all convinced that she should make her presence within the prison known, but trusting her uncle's judgment all the same.

"I'm over here, mother," Rose called in a shaky voice, and she instantly cursed herself for sounding so fearful.

"Where, darling?" Jane responded, her voice drawing nearer to Rose's location. Not any more than a few moments later, the queen rounded the corner, coming into view with Rose's instructor at her side, looking vastly more nervous and edgy than the composed Queen of Asgard.

"Here." Although Rosalie's voice barely came out above a whisper, it was enough to draw her mother's attention. Jane's attention was captured by her daughter's voice, and her eyes trained on the location from which it came. When she saw and processed the predicament in which her daughter stood, she gasped loudly, her hand flying to her chest, while the other reached out to grab Rose's instructor as support while her knees buckled beneath her.

Rose bit her bottom lip as she witnessed her mother'a reaction, growing more worried and concerned by the second. A tense silence pursued. Jane couldn't take her gaze full of hatred and disgust from the God of Mischief, and Loki met her eye with an indifferent, haughty glint in his emerald green eyes. Rose's attention diverted back and forth between the two, feeling the intensity of uncomfortable silence in every bone in her body.

"Laertes," Jane addressed Rosalie's instructor without breaking eye contact with Loki. "Summon for Thor immediately. Tell him it is most urgent."

"There is no need for that," a familiar voice echoed through the dungeon, as Thor whipped around the bend coming swiftly into view. "I am here."

_Ah, wonderful. L_oki thought bitterly. _I do love a family reunion_. If not for the grave circumstances, Rose would have snickered at Loki's dry sarcasm, but thought better of it and held her tongue, prying at the skirt of her dress in nervous anticipation as to what would transpire.

The King of Asgard's gaze immediately locked on the scene before him. His eyes hardened and his jaw locked in fury, his gaze traveling to Loki's, and the traitor of Asgard knew this day would not end well.

"Rose, step away from him now!" Thor commanded, his tone making no room for argument. Rosalie glanced quickly to Loki who answered her questioning look with a nod subtle enough for the princess to notice but remained unseen by the blonde's father. The princess did as her father commanded, backing away slightly from Loki yet unable to fully retreat from his presence, as she still was contained within the cell's walls. Thor's anger was like a physical presence, a beast, filling the room ominously, and Rose bit her bottom lip in worry, terrified of what her father might do in such a state.

"Loki, what have you done?" King Thor roared from his wife's side, lifting Mijolnir up in an affronted threat. Loki, never having been one to cower and especially not to the likes of an oaf turned King, straightened his back and rose to his full height, meeting the King's angry glare with a powerful one of his own.

"I have done nothing," he told him honestly, though he of course knew none would believe him.

"Lies," the King spat. Jane placed a hand atop her husband's forearm to calm and silence him as she stepped forward toward Loki's cell, her eyes briefly flashing to her daughter before turning her attention back to the God of Mischief.

"How have you conjured magic outside of this cell, Loki?" Jane asked, her voice cold, yet curious. "This prison was constructed by the strongest magic of the realm. How have you defied its power?"

"I have performed no magic," Loki replied honestly again. "If I were able to perform magic while within this cage, do you truly believe I would remain within it? Would I not have escaped by now, as it has now been more than a decade since my capture?"

"He deceives you with his silver tongue, Jane," Thor interjected in annoyance. "Loki is after our daughter. He has poisoned her with his magic."

"Thor," Jane said warningly, retreating back to her husband's side in attempts to calm him. She knew how aroused in anger he could be around his former brother. There had once been a time where Thor loved the man that stood before him. Perhaps an inkling of him still did. However, love was dead in this very moment. Rose's life was in danger. All cordiality and decency had been throw out the window.

While Jane attempted to quiet her husband, Thor pondered Loki's words. Given their history, he had certainly come to distrust his former brother and truly believed that Loki nearly always had some plan or ploy working beneath the surface; however, Thor had never known the fallen prince to avoid escape when it was made available to him. Loki would never risk his power and kingdom by remaining hidden within an underground prison had he the ability to evade as much or escape it. Something felt off, strange, and yet Thor could read the sincerity in Loki's eyes, the honesty in the raven haired man's voice. He wondered, though, Am I falling into another of his traps?

"Father," Rosalie's meek voice captured Thor's attention, and he diverted his gaze from Loki, his features melting at the sight of his daughter. "Loki didn't do anything wrong," she spoke firmly, her hands balled up in determined fists at her sides.

"L-l-Loki?" Thor stuttered in complete, dumbfounded bewilderment. "Rosalie, you know this man?"

"It wasn't his magic that brought me here," Rose ignored her father's question, not at all deterred, and continued, now completely in control of her thoughts and emotions. "It was mine."

A shocked silence ensued, both Jane and Thor finding it difficult to speak or even breath. "Rose," Thor croaked. "Surely you must be mistaken. You aren't thinking clearly. You have no magic-"

"But I do, father," Rosalie interrupted, stepping closer to the wall of magic separating her from her parents and keeping her with Loki. "I have from a very early age. I have only but kept it from you all these years." Another shocked silence settled over the King and Queen of Asgard. Jane looked like she was about to be sick, while Thor looked guarded and unconvinced of the claims his daughter made. Rose sensed his doubtfulness, and addressed it immediately. "You still don't believe me? Allow me to demonstrate." And Rose summoned forth a sphere of flames and fire into the palm of her hand, instantly captivating all those within the room. The power and control of the small girl was evident in the way she tended to the magical manifestation, and Loki found himself attempting to repress a smirk at his brother's blanched expression.

Thor didn't know what to say. Part of him still believed that Loki was controlling his daughter in some way, but he couldn't be sure. Rosalie seemed so in control of herself, so confident in her abilities. Surely magic could not create this illusion, but Thor was still skeptical. So, he acted upon one of his better instincts, closed his eyes, and sent call to one of his closest allies—a magical man who could surely assist in investigating the matter further.

"Heimdall, I know you're watching," Thor murmured. "I am in need of your assistance."

Almost as soon as the words were spoken, a familiar ripple in the air manifested, followed by a loud swoosh that instantly echoed throughout the cold dungeon as Asgard's gatekeeper, Heimdall, appeared, standing just to the right of Thor and in front of the reigning queen.

"You have summoned me, Your Majesty?" Heimdall questioned, glancing around the dungeon and taking note of the King and Queen on alert, the young princess looking nervously to the ground within the binds of Loki's cell, and the God of Mischief wholeheartedly glaring from within the confines of the cell Heimdall himself had helped to construct.

"I have, Heimdall. Thank you for coming," Thor said, ever one for proper manners and ever a king, even in the direst of situations. "I require your assistance if you are able."

"Of course, your majesty," the gatekeeper responded to his superior and friend. "What would you have me do?"

"During her lesson today, Rose was transported magically from the palace library to the dungeon, to Loki's cell," Thor explained although he knew Heimdall was already well aware of what had transpired. "While Loki remains within the cell and claims he has performed no magic, Rosalie was transported by magic."

Heimdall nodded. "I see, and you wish to know if he has regained his power?"

Thor simply nodded, while Jane on the other hand, chimed in once more. "We wish to know if he has tainted our daughter!"

"He hasn't," the gatekeeper replied. "All magic has an intricate signature and scent, specific to the caster. If the magic was performed within the last hour, I am able to read the signature and determine who the magic belongs to. And the magic that was cast was under no influence of the God of Mischief. It was, in fact, Princess Rosalie who transported herself to this very cell."

Both Thor and Jane's heads snapped to attention at that. "What does that mean?" Jane asked, genuinely shocked and confused at the entire situation.

"It means, Your Majesty, that the princess is a very powerful, accomplished sorcerer in her own right," Heimdall answered. "The scent is quite unique and belongs not to Loki, but to the princess herself. In fact, I have kept an eye on Rosalie from the time she was a toddler. Her ability to use and maneuver magic to her very will is quite impressive. She has the potential to become the greatest sorcerer ever witnessed by all of the nine realms."

"And have you not found it worthy of mentioning all these years?" Thor barked in astonishment, feeling hints of betrayal seeping through his veins.

"I have not," Heimdall answered with ease. "The princess has not been in any immediate danger."

"Perhaps that is not for you to determine," Thor growled. "As her father I had the right to know. And as your king it was your duty to inform me of this."

"I understand your frustration," the gatekeeper, bowed his head, accepting of the King's admonishment. "I only tell you of this to say it was she who performed magic this day, not Loki. The traitor is safely confined within his cell as he has been, utterly powerless."

Loki gritted his teeth to stop himself from berating the gatekeeper for his blatant dig at him. He may not have all the components to his magic, but the fallen prince would hardly call himself "utterly powerless." He was powerful in reputation alone, gods knew. As Loki was imagining every possible way to bring immense pain to the gatekeeper to the nine realms, he was swiftly brought back to the present by Thor's insistent voice.

"Then she must be cleansed immediately. If Rose has an extensive involvement in magic, then she could easily come in contact with the dark side of sorcery. And I will not allow that to happen."

Loki's blood instantly began to boil, anguish and rage coursing through his veins. The thought of the young princess being cleansed of her magic was one that made Loki wish every ill will upon his former brother. Although he personally had never undergone such a grueling procedure, from what he had gathered throughout his years, the experience wasn't a pleasant one. For one who was well adversed in the ways of magic, it was said to be almost unbearable. For Thor to even suggest that such a toll be taken to rid Rose of magic was nauseating. It further revealed Thor's ignorance in the matter, for Loki doubted that he knew of the process's repercussions. If he did, he might second guess submitting his daughter to such a horrific fate. At least, Loki hoped his brother's love for Rose outweighed the desire to keep her clean and untainted of sorcery. Suddenly, amidst his internal tirade, Rosalie's sweet, yet nervous voice trembled in Loki's mind, bringing him out of his morbid thoughts.

_Loki, I am afraid._ The fallen prince's heart clenched and nearly broke upon hearing the trembling unease in his princess's telepathic voice.

_Do not worry, my love_, Loki reassured her, capturing the strawberry blonde's gaze from across the cell as he continued to call out to her. _All will be well._

As he thought these words, Loki did his best to convince himself that they were true, but there was so much about this that he simply did not understand, and hadn't understood for a long time. How was it that Rosalie had been able to access her magic, let alone utilize it without proper knowledge or training? Then again, how were they speaking telepathically? The entirety of his connection to the young princess completely and utterly perplexed the sorcerer. It confounded him so much in fact that he was seriously considering disclosing every aspect of his curious connection with the blonde to Heimdall or even Thor, just so that perhaps someone, anyone, might be able to provide him with answers since his cell prevented him from seeking them on his own. He refrained, however, fearing that doing so might worsen his current predicament further, and above all, he was terrified that Thor would commission that wretched gatekeeper to find some magical way to prevent Loki from any and all further contact with the princess.

_Are you angry with me? Please don't be. I wasn't trying to transport myself here. It just happened. I would never want you get you in trouble. _Rosalie's voice was a pained, worried whisper in Loki's mind as she timidly posed the question, and it made the sorcerer melt. He had indeed been angry to hear that the child's magic was in danger of permanent repression. It enraged him for Thor to even think Rose willingly capable of performing dark magic. She was too pure and gentle. His gaze met Rosalie's once more, softening entirely to reassure the princess.

_No, Rose,_ he responded tenderly, _I could never be angry with you, darling._

Heimdall's discomfort was clear to those who knew him, and filled the room ominously, which did nothing but fuel Thor's fear and elevate his unease, knowing that the gatekeeper had yet to reveal all that he might know of the situation. Thus, Thor prompted his old friend for answers.

"How is this possible, Heimdall?" The king asked. "How would Rose be able to access high leveled magic and use it? How was she able to transport herself inside the high security of Loki's cell? None in this realm, or any realm, should be capable of this. Rose has never even been instructed of the ways of magic or trained in how to perform it."

"Of this I am not entirely certain, your majesty," Heimdall answered him, "but there is only one possibility that I am aware of. It is, however, a very old and rare form of magic that is known as Transference, and as far as I am aware, Your Majesty, this magic…" The gatekeeper hesitated as all present within the dungeon clung to his every word. He doubted his own knowledge of the subject as well as the possibility that what had happened here could actually be this legendary magic, yet it was the only answer he knew of.

"What, Heimdall?" Thor prompted him. "Tell me."

Heimdall hesitated only a moment longer before meeting the Asgardian King's gaze. "Transference has enabled Rose to tap into the magic of only other man whose skills are as extensive as her own. In this case, Loki. This phenomena has only ever been known to exist among those whose souls are bound by fate and time."

"Surely you can't be implying—"

"But I am, your Majesty," Heimdall interrupted the king calmly. "This kind of magic, Transference, has only ever occurred between destined Soulmates."

A unified, echoing gasp ripped through the dungeon, reverberating loudly off the walls as Loki, Thor, and Jane all reacted to the gatekeeper's words. Thor instantly locked on to the shocked and terrified expression that twisted across his former brother's face, signifying that this was news to him, just as it was to the rest. Thor felt a lasting sense of nausea growing in the pit of his stomach, and he immediately reckoned that the issues at hand would only but compile over time.


	15. Chapter 15

_**Author's Note: IMMENSELY SORRY FOR THE LONG WAIT! I've been out of town for a while and have just gotten the chance to write again. I'll try to keep the waiting to a minimum. That being said, this update ties up some loose ends, but the next few will be informative chapters**__**. Hope you all enjoy and thank you so much for the encouraging feedback! **_

Thor blinked rapidly as he slowly traveled back to consciousness from the blinding fear that consumed him so. As his vision finally focused, his own wide and worried blue eyes stared back at him from the face of his daughter who the king quickly realized was still contained within the binds of the cell's magic.

_ Loki? What does this mean?_ Rosalie asked, her voice trembling.

Loki was unable to respond, still shocked into an uncomfortable, reflective silence. He barely even heard the princess's question. Mentally, he was elsewhere, fading into a deep, eerie state of serene calmness.

Meanwhile, Thor immediately noticed the glistening of tears clouding his daughter's beautiful eyes while she turned her head to look at the traitor of Asgard. He did his best to suck in a deep breath beneath the weight of the circumstances before narrowing his eyes at his former brother. He wanted to address this with Loki. Oh how he desired to, but not with his daughter in the room and most certainly not with her in danger of being hurt, for she resided in the very prison Thor and Odin had condemned Loki to for the rest of his days, with that said God of Mischief contained with her.

"Heimdall, we must get Rosalie out of this cell. Is she able to do it on her own without having to put down the cell's enchantment?"

"She's done it once, so there is no reason to believe she can't do it again," Heimdall shrugged. "However, I wouldn't advise her to try. Only a handful of people have attempted to surpass the defensive walls of this prison's cells. Of those that make it through, it isn't rare that they would sever limbs and decapitate themselves. Splicing is a very common occurrence in such transportation."

This made all within the room shiver in disgust. Rosalie had read about splicing in her individual studies of magic. It was very devastating to those who inflicted it upon themselves, always unintentionally. She feared the sensation it would create as her skin prickled in discomfort at the gruesome images that flew through her mind.

"But Rosalie has conquered this feat once before..." Jane spoke up timidly.

"Don't be a fool," Loki snarled before either Jane or Thor could speak a word more. His anger was evident in his tone and it made Rose cringe. She had never heard him speak in such a repulsed manner. It was both hypnotizing as well as terrifying. "You heard what Heimdall said. It's a miracle that the princess didn't slice her torso in half while transporting into this cage! Urging her to attempt this again would be idiotic. Are you willing to risk your daughter's life just to see her out of this cell?"

Jane shuddered while Loki's vexing tongue lashed out at her, his emerald eyes penetrating deep into her own, sparkling with fierce loyalty and adoration for the girl that stood at his side. Jane almost couldn't believe what she was witnessing. Was Loki protecting her daughter? Did Loki really believe he knew what was best for her daughter? Of course, he had a point, as much as Jane hated to admit it.

"You will not speak to Jane in such a manner, Loki," Thor growled threateningly, to which Loki scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"No," Jane protested softly, gaze never diverting from Rosalie, her pride and joy. "He's right. I wasn't thinking clearly." Thor consoled his wife by taking hold of her nimble hand in his firm grasp, his mind whirling in contemplation. As much as he hated to admit it, there was only one other option to get his daughter out of Loki's cell.

"Heimdall," Thor addressed the gatekeeper, still grasping Jane's hand in support. "You are able to take down the wall's security, yes?"

"Of course, your majesty," Heimdall replied efficiently. Thor sighed deeply and harrowingly, eyeing Loki with a weary expression. His former brother turned nemesis met his gaze with an intensity that rivaled that of the reigning king. The God of Mischief knew what was about to be asked of him, or rather what he would be forced to obey, And Thor's next words confirmed the former prince's suspicions.

"Loki, if we are to let the cell's enchantment down, what reassurance do we have that you won't try to escape?"

Loki chucked dryly at that, his chest wracking with a deep, sinister laughter that reflected the absurdity of his predicament, yet those who knew him could sense the hollow, broken mirth in his tone. "You don't," he answered simply.

Thor growled in frustration, knowing that this conversation was fruitless. Loki couldn't be reasoned with. If given even the inkling of an opportunity to escape, Loki would take it regardless of the consequences.

_ Loki_, Rosalie whispered telepathically even though none could hear her but the very one she wished to speak to._ You wouldn't try to escape, would you?_

Loki sighed deeply, looking to the princess, a strained expression across his face. _I'm not sure_, he answered honestly.

Rose's heart melted at the raven haired man's uncertainty. His emerald green eyes shone with hesitancy as they bore into Rosalie's own crystal blue orbs. Rose smiled softly at the sorcerer in attempts to lighten his spirits.

_I would want you to if you were certain that father wouldn't stop you_, Rosalie was honest with the man as well. _But I couldn't bare to see you get hurt. Father is very powerful. And while I know that you are too, I just..._ Rosalie frowned deeply when she felt her cheeks flush. _I don't know what I'd do without you. And if you try to escape now... There is a very large chance that I would never be able to see you again. So please, cooperate this one time. Give us the chance to figure this out together._

Loki was struggling to hold himself together. Rosalie's words rang in his head, bringing forth emotions that he had learned to reserve only for the young princess. Her genuine concern for his health as well as the motivations behind her actions and words left him nearly breathless. He had never known another, perhaps apart from Frigga, that truly had his best interests at heart and truly cared for the mischief maker as much as Rose did. The depth at which the young girl's affections for the God of Mischief ran was quite astounding. It continued to leave Loki dumbfounded, despite the amount of times Rose had proven to care for the fallen prince.

"Then we must send for the Royal Guards immediately," Thor was speaking to Heimdall and Jane in a hushed tone. "If Loki is to attempt an escape, a fleet will be necessary to seize him."

"That won't be necessary," Loki interrupted, his tender, loving gaze never leaving Rosalie. "I will not try to break free."

Rose grinned sweetly at the sorcerer's admission, and mouthed a quick thank you. Loki nodded curtly in retribution, then diverted his attention towards the reigning king of Asgard, who stared at the pair, his gaze hardened and swimming with underlying confusion.

"What are you playing at, brother?" Thor accused.

"I play at nothing," Loki admitted with sincerity. "If you so choose to open this cell at this very moment, I will do nothing. The princess will be freed and I will remain within the combines of this prison without a fight. I will not attempt an escape."

Thor's eyes narrowed at Loki's claims. And while everything within the king told him to distrust the man he once considered brother, in his heart, Thor knew he was under no deceptions. Yet, that didn't stop him from making a final threat.

"I swear to you, Loki, if you do anything—"

"I won't," Loki cut Thor off shortly. "You have my word."

Thor didn't know what his former brother's word was worth at this point, but with a long, hard stare he swallowed his pride and fear, and gestured to Heimdall to let the defensive wall of magic weaken to nothing. Rose watched in awe as the golden veined transparent wall disintegrate. It was heartbreaking for her to realize that this was the very moment both she and Loki craved for. The moment in which Loki could be released from his sentence to eternal incarceration. However, thoughts of this becoming a reality were folly. Loki was not to be released, and both the sorcerer and princess knew that this was only a desire, something of which that would quite possibly never come true. Rose looked to her dearest friend to see the crestfallen gaze that lingered in his eyes. Rose felt her heart clench in pity and sorrow, not only for herself, but for Loki. Rosalie bit her bottom lip and took a few determined steps towards the God of Mischief, despite her mother and father's protests. Loki acknowledged the girl's presence and smiled sweetly down at her, yet still failing to conceal the desolation that consumed him. Rosalie tilted her head out of concern for her friend, her ocean blue eyes penetrating to Loki's very soul, reading him, understanding him. Her slender, delicate, and pale arm reached shakily upwards, extending toward the raven haired man. Loki watched Rose's face, and studied her gaze as he felt a tiny, chilled palm gently cup his cheek.

_It's alright_, the child's loving voice entered Loki's head with such a silky smooth confidence that it instantly lifted the man's spirits. _Everything is going to turn out fine. You'll see. You are not alone. We will figure this out together._

_Why... Why do you care so much?_ Loki found himself asking. _You bestow nothing but kindness and pureness upon me. I am not deserving of it. Why do you continue to remain so loyal?_

_ I thought it was obvious_, Rosalie half grinned half frowned. _I love you_.

A brilliant, heart-stopping smile broke through the pool of tears that had manifested on the child's face as she slowly rubbed a tender circle around the sorcerer's cheek with her thumb, wiping away a few stray tears of his own that he hadn't realized he'd allowed to fall. Loki pressed Rose's palm closer to his cheek by placing his own hand over the princess's hand, reveling in the touch. Nothing made any sense, and yet, everything appeared to Loki with more clarity than anything had in a long time. Soulmates or not, Loki cared for the young, wild haired, strawberry blonde princess more than anything. And apparently, the feeling was mutual. Rose loved Loki with every ounce of her being, and her devotion to him meant more than anything.

Loki was about to respond to the child's confession, however, before another word could be spoken, the moment ended as Thor barged into the cell, hauled Rosalie onto his shoulder, and swept his daughter away without another word. Loki wanted to storm after the girl, hold her close, and make a heartfelt confession of his own, but was halted by the wall's magical shield manifesting itself to encase the mischief maker in his cell once again. Instead, Loki was forced to chase after the princess's blue eyes that watched him from the arms of the King of Asgard. They never broke eye contact until Heimdall, Thor, Jane and Rose all rounded the corner of the dungeons, leaving Loki more stranded, isolated, and hopeless than he'd felt for years.

_I love you too, Rosalie. More than you'll ever know._


	16. Chapter 16

Thor and Jane didn't stop until they were secure in their own chambers, Rosalie still wrapped in her father's arms. "Oh, Rose!" Jane exclaimed as she took her daughter from her husband's strong arms, who was satisfied with Rosalie's seemingly healthy and normal behavior. "You worried me so!" Jane carried Rosalie to the bed and sat the girl down in her lap, brushing a few stray curls from the princess's rosy face.

"I am fine, mother," Rose said softly, hoping to reassure her mother while simultaneously being quite moved by her mother's endearing and genuine concern for her wellbeing. "I apologize for frightening you."

Jane cupped a gentle hand around her precious princess's tender cheek and did her best to school her features as the memories of what had come to light in the dungeons flooded back to her with a raging ferocity. She looked to Thor who stared straight back at her, both their thoughts lingering in the same dark place of what they'd just been bestowed. Whatever were they to do with this knowledge, if it was even true? A great part of Thor doubted that any part of it could be true in regard to his daughter and his former brother, though an even greater part of him quaked in fear that it just might be. He needed answers.

Thor made his way to the side of the bed, sitting softly to the side of his wife while their daughter still clung to the queen's side. Thor wrapped an arm around his wife and squeezed her shoulder gently in reassurance. They both had suffered quite an emotional blow in the dungeons and though he had the urge to simply fall apart upon hearing Heimdall's revelation, he instead chose to remain strong for his wife, but more than that, he chose not to believe a word of it. He could not even bear the thought of the possibility. Even so, Thor was bitterly reminded of the genuine sincerity Loki had displayed in the dungeons. In addition to his truthfulness, he had also looked at Rosalie with an intensity that frightened Thor into indulging in the possibility of what Heimdall had suggested. Jane replied to Thor's reassuring gesture by reaching a hand over to squeeze her husband's own in consolation which made Thor's heart warm. While gazing upon his family, Thor was reminded of how they made him feel so loved and so special, though he knew this moment could not last. There were serious issues to tend to, and in order for the king to do so, he must first speak to his wife in private, which meant Rose would have to go; Thor, however, was far from comfortable with Rosalie being left on her own.

So, Thor shared a knowing look with his wife before quietly excusing himself quickly from their chambers and into the hall where Heimdall, who had accompanied them to the dungeons, waited patiently for word of what to do next. He perked up upon seeing the king approach him.

"May I have a word?" Thor asked quickly and quietly. The gatekeeper nodded and followed the king through the nearest door into Rose's own chambers. Once inside, Thor quickly turned to his old friend, his words fast and solemn.

"Heimdall, is there a spell you can cast upon Rosalie's chambers to prevent magic from being performed within?"

"There is, Your Majesty," Heimdall told him confidently, "but it will not be indefinite. The spell will last only this night and the next."

"Very well," Thor said, sighing as he nodded. "Cast it immediately. I will send Rose to her chambers in five minutes' time." Heimdall nodded his understanding and set about Rosalie's chambers, waving his hand as a golden light emanated from his chest, the magic of the Gatekeeper springing forth from within him.

Thor returned swiftly to his own chambers where Jane and Rosalie sat waiting for him. "Rose," Thor began, "Your mother and I must speak privately; therefore, I am sending you to your chambers where you will remain until either your mother or I come for you. The Gatekeeper has cast a spell upon your chambers to prevent you from performing magic. This is for your own protection. Do you understand?"

Rose appeared momentarily crestfallen and though her father's tone warned her not to argue, she could not help the question that spilled from her lips. "Will the spell last, Father? Will I never be able to perform magic while within my chambers?"

Thor gritted his teeth upon hearing his daughter's blatant disappointment at the prospect of being unable to perform magic, and though he did his best to never lie to his daughter (with the exception of the omission of the Evil Sorcerer's identity as the God of Mischief), he braced himself, calmed his facial features, and breathed a line of pure dishonesty. "Yes, Rosalie. The spell is indefinite."

...

Loki could feel Rose's disappointment and frustration as he heard the blonde princess grumble nonsensically inside her head. Worried for her, he reached through their secret telepathic bond, calling out to the child. _Rose? Are you well?_

_I have been locked within my chambers,_ Rosalie answered him, and though Loki was not surprised by this in the slightest, it still made him want to choke the life out of Thor. How dare they lock his precious princess away as if she, too, were her parents' prisoner? It did not sit well with the sorcerer at all. However, not wanting to speak ill of the girl's father to her, he did his best to reassure the strawberry blonde.

_They are simply trying to protect you, darling. I am sure it will not be for long. _

_It will, Loki. My father had Heimdall cast a spell upon my chambers. It prevents me from performing any magic_. Loki only grew angrier at this. Thor was acting as if Rose had deliberately desired to learn and perform dark magic and intended to do it again. Magic was not a bad thing. It was what one chose to do with that magic that could potentially poison the craft, much like how Loki's former actions had. However, Rose didn't have a dark bone within her body. All magic she used was harmless and had good intentions. And to have the gatekeeper perform such a spell suggested that the King of Asgard intended to keep his daughter tucked safely away there for an extended period of time. That, Loki thought, simply would not do.

Loki racked his brain, calling forth every bit of magical knowledge lurking in the recesses of his mind, unused and unneeded over the course of an entire decade spent caged like an animal in a magical prison. He needed knowledge. Knowledge was power, and if he could perhaps learn more of his connection to the princess, he could use that knowledge to help the girl and perhaps even help himself. But given his particular situation, his options were quite limited. In fact, he could think of only one way to obtain the information he required, yet he wasn't willing to drag the one person he cared about into his exploitations.

However, as if on cue, Rosalie's voice spoke to him through their telepathic connection, surprising the sorcerer of the content in her words.

_Loki, the magic that Heimdall said exists between us is called Transference, correct? _

Loki's brows furrowed and he replied to the girl's question cagily, even though he couldn't erase the name of the magic from his mind even if he tried. _I believe so. Why? _

_Well, I'm searching through some old books I acquired from the West Wing a few years ago, and I found a whole section dedicated to Transference in one of them. Dare I say it, but I believe I found some answers..._

_**A/N: I know this ends in a really awkward place, but I just wanted to get this up. Next part shouldn't take too long to write so be on the lookout! Thank you for the continued interest and please review with your theories and what you'd like to see! **_


	17. Chapter 17

_**Author's Note: I might not be able to update for a few days but I swear I'll try! You guys have awesome input and some great theories. Some of you are pretty spot on if I do say so myself...This one was fun to write! Hope you enjoy it! **_

Loki pressed his lips together tightly and released a heavy sigh, somewhat disappointed that the princess was the one who was forced to obtain the information he seeked. But his curiosity won out the rest of his heart, knowing that the golden haired princess would only but recite the information to him even if he advised her not to.

_Well then.. Let's hear it._

Rosalie began to telepathically recite the passage from the book, following the words with a tiny finger settled daintily upon the weathered page.

_Of all magic known to us, there exists one more powerful than any other_, she read swiftly. _It is an ancient and rare magic of unknown origin. The power of this magic exceeds even that of a union of True Love as True Love is a component of this more powerful magic. It is the magic of destined Soul Mates. Soul Mates exist when one unified soul is split and born into two bodies, creating twin souls. Once each being reaches the age of understanding and is united with the other, upon the first full understanding of both counterparts, each soul will recognize the other and will be woven into one. United Soul Mates share a bond more powerful than any in existence, imparting unique abilities and magic upon the bearers. Each soul will impart its experience upon the other, sharing each being's intellectual, emotional, physical, and magical maturity. Destined Soul Mates shall become united in all possible manners, gaining intricate knowledge of one another that shall solidify the unique magic and power of their shared destiny. Of the many magical abilities of destined Soul Mates, two abilities garner the most power and thus, require due reverence. These abilities consist of the magic of Transference and the magic of Telepathy._

_Both powers shall only occur once each individual being harboring twin souls reaches the age of understanding and the two beings share an intellectual bond. Once this has occurred, the magic of Transference as well as the magic of Telepathy will flourish in the reunited soul halves, eternally binding the beings to one another. The magic of Telepathy allows for destined Soul Mates to communicate without voice. This magic knows no bounds and shall remain untouched by time or distance. Of the magic of Transference, little is known. It is believed that destined Soul Mates may impart their individual magical abilities upon one another, transferring each of their own unique power to the other. It is further believed that destined Soul Mates may use the magic of Transference to tap into the power of their mate when the need or desire arises once an initial physical connection has occurred._

_The magic of destined Soul Mates is the rarest form of magic known in all the realms and throughout time. It is believed to occur once only in a millennium. Beings who share the magic of destined Soul Mates shall also share the power of True Love and it is believed that any and all children born of destined Soul Mates shall be innately magical and powerful beyond measure._

Rosalie stared at the page once she'd finished, processing all that the passage had relayed. Her voice echoed heavily upon Loki's shell-shocked flesh. His head was spinning at a rate that threatened his ability to remain conscious. How was any of this possible? Rosalie was a child, a child! And yet, he could not deny the truth of the scripture in regard to his connection with the strawberry blonde princess. He attempted to fit the ridiculously crooked and complicated puzzle pieces together to make sense of the reality he now was facing, repeating the passages of the book over and over in his head.

In their world, while the age of maturity occurred at what would be equivalent to eighteen years in Midgardian time, the age of understanding occurred much sooner, believed to be at seven years when a child comes to understand the distinction among the separate shades of morality. However, Rose and Loki had not shared a physical connection until just hours before, unless their somewhat of contact shortly after the princess's eighth Name Day when the child had discovered Loki's true identity was considered physical contact. The more Loki thought of it, the more he repeatedly drew to the same conclusion. Their twin souls must have weaved together through the power of physical touch and the magic of true recognition during that encounter. Even though it hadn't been true physical contact, it was the only explanation. Perhaps the moment Rosalie had realized that the person she'd grown to consider a friend was in fact the very God of Mischief she was so enamored with had sparked an age of maturity. It was in this moment that the magic of Transference and Telepathy were finally able to flourish. The simple alignment through their hands had awakened a magic from deep within, the most powerful magic in all the lands, and with that knowledge, Loki realized that his golden-haired princess had not only alleviated the sorcerer of his bone-deep loneliness, she had completely and irrevocably changed Loki's life.

A small gasp echoed in Loki's mind, and he instantly dropped all of his train of thought to console to the princess.

_Rose, dear, what's wrong?_

_Listen to this!_ Rosalie squeaked in excitement and fear. _A usual occurrence between destined Soul Mates is that of the appearance of what is commonly referred to as the infinity ring. An infinity ring is a pale, circular impression that appears on the skin to both counterparts of the bound Soul Mates, usually located in the same place on both mates. The pale ring becomes visible right about the time of the moment of understanding..._

_Loki, I have a pale ring on my right shoulder blade! That can't be a coincidence! Do you have one as well?_

Loki felt his mouth go dry as yet another element presented itself to the pair of supposed Soul Mates. He couldn't believe what he was hearing, but at the same time it brought about so much clarity. _I do_, Loki found himself admitting sheepishly. _On my right shoulder blade as well._

_Strange_, Rosalie murmured, finding nothing more intelligent to say.

Loki and Rosalie said nothing more to each other, both consumed in the possibilities of the future. Both fearful as well as enlightened by the information they had discovered.

...

Nearly a week had passed since Thor had ordered his daughter to be locked within the girl's spellbound chamber to protect her from the growing connection between the princess and the former Prince of Asgard. Rose paced her chamber, her agitation having reached the point of unbearable. She simply could not fathom how Loki had managed not to slip into utter insanity after spending a decade within the confines of his prison cell when Rosalie, surrounded by the comfort and luxury of her own royal bedchamber, was on the verge of madness after only a week of being unable to leave. All day and all night she was locked within her chambers, visited only thrice daily to receive meals from her mother or father who frequently apologized but reminded her that her isolation was for her own protection until they could gain the information they needed to compose a solid plan of how to move forward.

Rose, though, was having none of it. The first two days of her isolation, she pleaded with her parents to help her to understand, to let her free of her chambers, to let her assist in seeking answers (despite the fact she'd already discovered the truth behind her and Loki's connection), yet her many requests had been denied without second thought. As such, a deep anger and resentment toward her parents grew steadily within her and by the third day and each day since, the young princess had resolved to deny her parents any further respect or affection. Rather, she greeted the monarchs with only silence, refusing to speak to either no matter how they tried to reason with her. She would not even look them in the eyes. The only person she communicated with now was Loki by way of their shared telepathy. The sorcerer was Rosalie's only solace during her isolation, as they now shared a similar predicament, and the raven haired man consistently did his best to comfort the young princess and reassure her that all would be well again soon, that her parents were merely frightened for her and protecting her the best they knew how. Rose, though, wholeheartedly disagreed.

_Rosalie, darling, you must calm yourself_, Loki cautioned his princess, his sultry voice filling the girl's head comfortingly. _You will make yourself ill._ He had been able to sense Rose's anger steadily growing throughout the past few days, and frequently felt the pain of the princess's tears, which simultaneously broke the sorcerer down to a mess of his own puddled sadness at being unable to pull his golden-haired girl into his arms to comfort her as well as stirred a violent anger within him at the audacity of that wretched Thor and his precious Jane Foster.

_I cannot calm myself, Loki,_ Rose's sweet voice answered him._ I have tried. I feel as a caged animal. I need to leave, Loki. I cannot breathe. I cannot sleep. I cannot even eat._ Loki's fury was a tangible beast in the dungeons, his knuckles painfully white as he listened to the suffering of his beloved princess. If ever he escaped this damned prison, there would be hell to pay, a price he intended to place upon the man he had despised for so long. It no longer mattered to the sorcerer if Thor's intentions were pure. Rose deserved so much better than this cruelty, regardless of its innocent nature. The princess had done nothing wrong, and it certainly was no fault of the girl's that she was born into this fate, just as it was no fault of Loki's. He simply could not stand this any longer. Something must be done.

_I need you to try harder, love_, Loki pleaded with the girl. _Please, Rosalie, I cannot stand your suffering. It breaks my heart._

Rose immediately relaxed upon hearing her sorcerer's confession. She forced deep, calming breaths into her young lungs in an effort to do as Loki requested. She would do anything for the beautiful sorcerer, anything, a fact that only further solidified shortly after she had been locked in her chambers and she had shared the information of Transference with the man who was unable to obtain the answers he so desperately desired. Truthfully, Rose did not understand all of it, but then again, it was unfamiliar territory for the sorcerer as well, though the princess admired and respected her beloved sorcerer even more upon hearing the truth. She had always known they were connected, and this new knowledge only proved she had been right, justifying her many dreams as well as her deep affection for the raven haired man. Loki had been truly surprised that Rosalie had shared the information so freely with him, as most children often picked and chose what they believed a adult should and should not know, but not Rosalie. Loki had been devoutly honest with Rosalie ever since the girl had discovered who he really was, and shared with her openly, answering her many questions regardless of how tiresome they might become at times. So it was only right that Rose did the same. And during this difficult time now, Rosalie felt that Loki truly was her only ally, perhaps because they shared the same destiny and predicament or perhaps simply because the fallen prince loved her so.

_Good girl_, Loki whispered inside the princess's head, sensing Rose's calm as it eased the ache in the sorcerer's chest and the throbbing in his brain. He breathed a sigh of relief in knowing he had once more successfully comforted and calmed the strawberry blonde, which only comforted and calmed Loki himself.

_Thank you, Loki_, Rose whispered back to him, her tiny voice like a precious song in the raven haired man's head, a melody that the sorcerer cherished beyond any he had ever heard.

_You are quite welcome, darling. Do you feel better now?_

_Yes, very much, though I still ache to leave here._

_I know, darling. I know, but you must be patient with your parents._ Loki hated justifying the actions of those idiotic monarchs to the girl, but he felt that instilling a sense of hatred in the princess for her own parents would be a most selfish act, and he refused to ever be selfish with Rosalie if he could help it. Besides, as much as he despised Thor, he was certain the blonde man truly loved his daughter more than anything, which garnered respect from the sorcerer as Loki's own upbringing had been an unusually cruel and a quite literally heartless experience of which he would never wish upon any child.

_I have no patience left, Loki_, Rosalie answered, and Loki could sense the girl's frustration beginning to grow again, a dull throb already reigniting within his brain. _I cannot spend another day trapped here. I will not survive it._ The girl did have quite the talent for drama, Loki thought, which made him wonder if he had imparted that, too, upon the princess so long ago. He sighed, preventing himself from chuckling at the thought as he knew Rose would either hear it or sense it and become frustrated with him as well.

_Rosalie..._

_No! I will not be calmed! What sorts of parents lock away their only child even as a means of protection? I am no one's property, Loki, and I refuse to be treated as such!_ Loki groaned as he realized that his princess was on the verge of another hours-long tirade about her parents' behavior, and while he agreed with the girl, he also loathed hearing the rants as they only ever led to Rose breaking down in tears which crushed Loki's soul over and over and over.

_Rose.. _He said the girl's name again, hoping to break the blonde's concentration from her rant and focus on calming herself once more. Unfortunately, he had no such luck.

_I need out of here, Loki! I need out of here NOW!_

_Rose, sweetheart, where would you even go were you to be freed from your chambers? You would still be confined to the castle and your parents would never allow you to visit with me. So, you see? All of this anger is fruitless and is only hurting you... and me. _

_But I want to be with you, Loki. I need to see you._ Loki melted like wax held to a flame. He, too, had been itching to see the princess, especially since discovering the truth of their connection. It seemed that with every passing day, the magic of their connection grew stronger and more powerful. He ached for the girl to be at his side once more so that he could see that she was safe, that she was comforted, that she was happy.

_I need to see you now!_ Rose repeated, her voice rising to a high-pitched whine. Then, Loki shared Rosalie's sudden vision as the image of himself spilled into the princess's mind with surprising detail and clarity. _NOW!_ Rose shouted again, the sound echoing in Loki's brain like a blaring trumpet and the sorcerer immediately felt a tug in from deep within him and not but seconds later, the strawberry blonde princess appeared before his dungeon cell in a cloud of sparkling golden flecked magic.

Loki, though surprised by the girl's sudden appearance, did not spare a second for thought. He immediately ran to the cell walls and dropped to his knees as the blonde child smiled triumphantly and launched her body as close to the wall of magic as she could. Rose raised her hand to the wall of magic and without hesitation pressed her palm against the shocking barrier, redirecting the defensive magic away from her hand. Loki instantly pressed his palm to hers and a ragged sob wrenched from his own throat as he felt the child's flesh upon his own. He was unable to keep his emotions at bay as a steady stream of tears poured gratefully from his emerald eyes, overjoyed at seeing the girl who not only was his truest friend but quite literally his other half.

"I missed you," Rose whispered against the wall of magic, her voice cracking with her own tears of happiness. She had finally managed to escape, to see her sorcerer again.

"I missed you as well, my darling," Loki answered her. They stayed like that for a long time, simply keeping their hands pressed against the wall and reveling in the comfort of being reunited with their other halves before Loki feared that the magic of his prison cell might soon become quite uncomfortable or even painful for the princess. He pulled back with a regrettable sigh, leaving both of them to smile sweetly at the other.

"I did magic," Rose whispered to him, a most adorable smile stretching her lips as she practically giggled with glee at her accomplishment. Loki melted all over again at the sight. His princess was impossibly charming. He knew he would never be able to deny the girl anything that was within his power to provide.

"You did!" Loki said, sharing the girl's excitement. "You performed perfectly, darling, and with no training or help from anyone. I am quite proud of you, dear." And he was. He was undeniably gushing with pride in his princess's abilities. He no longer feared the effect of the magic on Rose now that he knew the truth of the connection they shared. Rosalie's purity and innocence fluttered through the magic, adorning it with the sweetest, most delicate scent, only proving that she had not and would not be corrupted, and Loki would certainly be with her every step of the way to guide her wherever needed, whether it be telepathically or in person, though she knew the latter would be rare, if ever, given Thor's desire to keep the two of them separated.

Rose beamed like a brilliant star in the night sky as Loki praised her. She had never felt so treasured in all her life as when her sorcerer claimed pride in her abilities, even with her parents who had constantly praised her throughout the years. Everything with Loki was amplified. Everything was louder, brighter, softer, harder, sweeter...everything was just so much more with the sorcerer; it was overwhelming.

"Rose?" Loki questioned, sudden realization washing over the raven haired man. "How is it you have come to be here? I thought your father had Heimdall cast a spell to prevent magic from happening indefinitely within your chambers."

As soon as the words left Loki's mouth, the reality of the situation sunk into Rosalie's heart like a jagged knife. She surprisingly put the pieces together before Loki was able to, a devastating fury filling the girl's small body as her own realization manifested. Her father had lied.


	18. Chapter 18

_**Author's Note: This was initially going to be longer, but I figured it would work better broken up into two parts. Thank you to all those who take the time to review and follow/ favorite! It is very much appreciated! Let me know what you think :) **_

Red golden curls bounced and flew wildly as the young Princess Rosalie burst into the throne room amidst the mass of the kingdom's subjects speaking their various concerns and requests to the reigning king and queen as was weekly procedure. Every head in the crowd snapped in the young blonde's direction, all immediately dropping into graceful bows before their princess as they parted and cleared a path for her to her parents who sat dumbfounded in their thrones as they finally saw what had caused the distraction. Their blonde daughter stood like a tiny, regal statue in the open doorway of the throne room, hands perched smartly upon her hips making her appear more as a miniature rendition of Loki rather than Thor. Even as a child, her presence in such posture and in such an obvious state of anger was rather intimidating. Jane gulped audibly as her daughter's gaze locked with hers and projected all the fury harbored silently within. This would not end well.

Rose nodded curtly to the subjects though she could not bring herself to smile, not in her present emotional state. She could hear Loki in her head pleading with her to calm down, but she only saw red. She swiftly made her way toward her parents, her arms swinging viciously at her sides. As soon as she reached the dais, she wasted no time in quickly climbing the several steps to her father's throne, stopping just in front of the man whose honesty and consideration of her she had always cherished, and as such, now felt truly betrayed.

Thor instantly leaned forward to whisper to his daughter so as to prevent their many subjects from witnessing what was sure to be an epic argument; however, the second he leaned forward, Rosalie was right in his face, her tiny nose nearly brushing the king's and the glare in her ocean blue eyes was one Thor had never seen adorning his sweet child's face. It frightened him, but more than that, it buried the king in his own shame. He knew exactly the cause of Rosalie's anger, seeing as how if the princess were standing before him now, it meant she had discovered that she was in fact able to perform magic while confined in her chambers and had done so.

"You lied to me," the child growled through gritted teeth, a sound that sent a shiver down both her mother and father's spines. Queen Jane immediately stood to dismiss the subjects from the throne room, ordering the guards to usher them all out with the monarchs' apologies for early conclusion. Jane then turned swiftly to her daughter, placing a strong hand on her shoulder to pull her from her father's personal space.

"Rosalie, you will not speak to your father in such a way," she ordered, her tone serious and commanding, though the princess was not shaken. She shrugged away her hand and turned quickly on her mother.

"Do not touch me!" She barked at her, and Jane nearly jumped with surprise, taken aback at not only her daughter's deliberate disobedience as she had always been such a respectful child, but at the tone of voice she had taken with her. Jane had never seen her so upset, so infuriated. It sent a jolt of pain through her heart knowing she and her husband had been the cause of their precious princess's hurt feelings, though they truly believed they had been only protecting her.

"Rosalie, please," Thor pleaded with his daughter. "Try and see reason. We were only trying to protect you."

"By lying to me?" Rose practically shouted, her anger only growing upon hearing her father's repetitive excuse of which she had grown exhaustingly weary. "By locking me within my chambers as a common criminal?" Thor's eyes welled with tears at hearing his beloved daughter's perspective of what they had done to her. Had they truly made her feel as such? Knowing as much infinitely shattered the King of Asgard's heart and he yearned to comfort his daughter, to explain, to comfort himself, but he feared nothing would work this time.

"My love, you must be protected from the God of Mischief at all costs," Thor tried to reason with the child again. "He has manipulated you, Rose. You do not know him as your mother and I do."

Rose shook her head furiously in answer. "He has been nothing but honest with me, Father! It is you who has manipulated me. You have given me lies where Loki has given me truth!"

"Your father was protecting you!" Jane shouted, her anger rising as she witnessed the heartbreak spill across her husband's handsome, strong, masculine features. Her voice echoed like a god's in the throne room, and still Rosalie did not back down. "Loki is evil! Even now, he has managed to turn you against your own father! See reason, Rose, we beg of you."

"No, Mother," Rosalie answered her. "It is my father who has turned me against himself and you. You have betrayed my trust and not for the first time. I may be a child, but I do not like to be lied to."

"Rosalie, I am so sorry," Thor cried, tears threatening to stream fast and slick down his cheeks, "but I have to protect you from Loki. As much as I would love to believe he can once again be the man he was when I was young, I do not trust that he can or will. We have given him chances to change and time and time again, he refused."

"He will," the princess countered, "for me. He is, for me. You cannot keep me from Loki, Father. Do not even try. Loki is mine." And with that, the Princess marched swiftly from the throne room, leaving her parents shocked and silent in her wake, and made her way to the dungeons. Once she reached the entrance to the forbidden corridor, she did not even bother trying to sneak past the guards, but rather she simply pushed past them, verbally daring them to try and physically prevent her from entering and thus, having to face her parents' wrath or Loki's were they to accidentally harm her in the process. She received no further argument and made her way down to her other half, desperately seeking the sorcerer's comfort for her furiously aching heart.

...

_You cannot keep me from Loki, Father. Do not even try. Loki is mine. _Loki had heard every word of those final three sentences loud and clear from his cot in the dungeon as it seemed Rosalie had deliberately voiced them inside her mind as she had spoken them aloud, wanting the sorcerer to hear. The princess's fierce resolve in speaking the words had slammed into Loki's chest with a force that nearly knocked the breath from him, shocking and yet warming him like nothing ever had. No one had ever wanted him, loved him so deeply and without judgment as the young princess had. He somehow knew that only Rose, his destined Soul Mate, could ever cherish him and love him so devoutly despite knowing everything he had once been and done, and Loki had never been more grateful in his many years than he was for the princess who had blown through his heart like a powerful storm and changed him from the inside out.

Loki could also not help but smirk at Rose's words as the princess verbally put her own father, the sorcerer's nemesis, in his place. _That's my girl_, Loki thought, though as much of a guilty pleasure as it was, he could not help but fear the coming repercussions and consequences of Rosalie's actions this day. Thor and Jane would surely not stand for such insolence, especially knowing their daughter's voiced intentions of continuing to see the man they both considered a villain. He feared what would become of him, not because he worried for himself, but because he worried for what it would do to Rose were he to be harmed or taken from the girl indefinitely.

...

Several hours later, Thor made his way swiftly down to the dungeons where he knew he would find his daughter paying visit to his former brother. It had grown quite late as the reigning king had stirred into action after the unfortunate scene in the throne room and had spent the last many hours preparing for this moment.

Behind him trailed a handful of guards, Jane, as well as Sif and the Warrior's Three. All were in on the plight that was to take place, even if all were a tad uneasy and nervous about the repercussions it would bring. Thor gripped Mjolnir tightly in his hand as it swung haphazardly at his side. Thor's nerves quaked through his body, though his resolve did not waver. He feared his daughter's reaction to what he was to do, but he could not risk losing his beloved child to the man who had made his life utter hell for so long, and he hoped with every fiber of his being that Rosalie would come to forgive him in time, eventually seeing reason, eventually understanding as she came of age.

The reigning king rounded the bend of the dungeon, his daughter and Loki coming swiftly into view as Rose sat upon the cold and damp dungeon floor, Loki slightly elevated above the princess upon the flooring of his cell, both speaking with one another quietly. He noticed the stunningly heartfelt smile that painted the sorcerer's face and realized that he had not seen the man smile so since Thor himself was younger. It made his heart ache even more in his chest for what he was about to do, but he could not back out now. He must go through with this, for Rosalie. He must protect his daughter no matter the cost.

Loki's smile quickly melted away as his nemesis came quickly into view, his ocean aqua blue eyes so like Rose's glaring into him. Rosalie, seeing Loki's suddenly stiffened posture and frown turned to find her father standing only feet away, watching the two of them. Behind him stood a gathering of people, including her father's closest friends, her godmother, Sif, and her mother. The young girl rose quickly to her feet, placing herself in front of where Loki now stood, having copied the girl's actions. Loki smiled internally at Rose's obvious show of protection, though he knew it would not stop the princess's father from having his way, and he wondered what exactly Thor might have in mind.

"Rosalie, may I have a word with Loki alone, please?" Thor asked, softening his voice as he spoke to the daughter he cherished above all, though his gaze never strayed from his nemesis.

Rosalie raised her chin defiantly and answered her father. "You may not." Loki smiled internally again. His princess could so easily reduce him to a puddle of mush, which did not do well for Loki's powerful reputation, though he found he simply no longer cared.

"Rose, please," it was Sif who spoke now, crouching down to the girl's level. "Come with me. It is late, and you must be tired." Rose sighed at hearing her godmother appealing to her, her guard coming down just a touch. She couldn't help feeling guilty as she pressed her lips together and studied the pleading look in Sif's eyes.

_Rosalie_, Loki whispered softly in the princess's mind_. I will be fine. Go ahead and go now. Let me speak with your father. All will be fine, love._

_I do not trust them with you_, the child answered, glaring at her father and mother as she spoke silently with her beloved sorcerer.

_I know, darling, but they are still your parents as well as the reigning King and Queen of Asgard. Trust in me, love. We shall do as they say for now. Go on, Rose. I will speak with you soon._

"Fine," Rose sighed aloud, answering Loki vocally, which surprised both the sorcerer and the reigning monarchs. The princess turned quickly to Loki and added, "but I will not be far."

"Very well, darling," Loki conceded, affectionately and smiling sweetly at her before saying, "Go now as I said, love." With that, Rosalie turned on the spot, shooting a glare at her father before heading away from her Soul Mate's cell and towards Sif. The female warrior grinned thinly down at the princess, took hold of her hand and gently guided her away from the commotion that was sure to ensue behind them.

"Thor," Loki acknowledged the man he still blamed for ruining his life when Rose had disappeared completely, though when he thought about it now, he realized he honestly had reason to thank the king for providing him with a true reason for living—Rose. He, of course, would never admit this aloud to the golden haired picture of purity everyone believed him to be, including Thor himself.

"What did you mean just now, Loki? You told Rosalie, 'Go now as I said', yet I heard you say nothing. What did you mean?" Thor questioned him, momentarily distracted from his mission by his curiosity of the interaction between Loki and his daughter.

Loki sighed and wondered whether or not he should lie to the lot, but then, what good would that do him? In fact, he thought that perhaps, knowing the truth, Thor might soften his infuriatingly strong resolve and perhaps see reason. He hoped that the king and queen would realize that he meant Rose no ill will or harm; that he would, quite contrarily, protect the girl with all the power he possessed, even if it cost him his life. So, he took a deep breath and against his better judgment, he took a chance on Thor, sharing the secret with the oaf turned king.

Loki told Thor everything, all that he had learned from Rosalie from the old, weathered book she had in her possession and all that he had concluded on his own about his first encounter with Rose and Rose's vast maturity. He shared the truth about his ability to communicate telepathically with the king's daughter and that that was what he had meant when speaking to the princess earlier. He admitted to the peculiar markings that both he and Rosalie bore on their shoulders. He did his best to explain what he had come to understand of Transference and how it had occurred between him and Rosalie. He even spilled about the many visits they had shared over the last two years until he had exhausted all the knowledge that had remained a secret formerly known by only the fallen prince and the young princess, and he hoped that Thor would not make him regret sharing this with his former comrade and brother.

Everyone stood utterly speechless for a long time after hearing Loki confess all that he had kept hidden with the princess and all the two of them shared. The reigning king and queen simply could not wrap their minds around the knowledge. So instead, they selfishly denied it despite the sincerity in Loki's gaze and voice. They simply could not bear the thought of sharing their daughter with the sorcerer, and thus convinced themselves to follow through with their plan, telling themselves just as they had done over and over that it was to protect their precious daughter. The newly shared knowledge of their connection only fueled Thor's resolve.

Thor sighed and ran his hand through his beard in conflicted contemplation. Loki narrowed his eyes into a glare, sensing that all the information he had relayed was merely going in one ear and out the other for his former brother. He silently braced himself for what the golden child had to give in response to the God of Mischief's confession.

"I am sorry for this, Loki," Thor sighed harrowingly. "But I have no other choice. I cannot allow you to take my daughter. I cannot trust that you will not harm her or use her to exact your revenge upon me. I must protect her from you, from all of this."

"What exactly do you have in mind for my punishment then, _brother_?" Loki sneered in fury. How could Thor be so dense as to be so blind to the truth when it stared him square in the eyes?

Thor flinched at the sorcerer's animosity, but then hardened his gaze and heart, forcing himself to follow through on the plan he and all those involved had devised.

"Tomorrow at dawn, you will be forever banished from Asgard, stripped of your powers and memories. You will never again be a burden to this realm, nor to any other. The madness ends here, Loki. You will no longer wreak havoc upon all those you encounter. This suffering will end."

Loki chuckled dryly and sarcastically at Thor's final words, though his heart clenched in pure agony at the solemn clarity of his fate spoken to him in words of blunt vexation. "That is where you'd be wrong. The suffering will have only just begun. You would do this to your own daughter?"

"She will come to understand in time," Thor said confidently, though his stomach churned uneasily at the thought that Rose might never truly understand...


	19. Chapter 19

_**Author's Note: I'm really sorry for the long wait! This one took a while because the content is so... Well... You'll see. And I'm still not 100% satisfied with it, but I figured I've kept you guys waiting long enough. Reminder: This story isn't even close to being finished, so rest assured, this isn't the end. Just the beginning...**_

Jane didn't receive one minute of slumber all night. Her mind whirled in relentless contemplation, doubt, guilt and fear. An endless chill settled uncomfortably in her bones, and she had to rise from her husband's side and pace about their chambers' balcony in order to relieve the persistent shivering. Unfortunately, it was unable to ease matters. Jane knew in her heart that this plan Thor and his friends had devised was a poor one. And while she wholeheartedly agreed that something must be done in order to keep Loki and Rosalie separated, she couldn't shake the feeling away that this wasn't the way.

Firstly, Rose would be more than distraught when she found out what had become of her 'destined soulmate.' The repercussions of Loki's banishment would surely be disastrous. Jane was unable to push the thought away that her daughter may never come to forgive she and Thor for their actions. But the girl didn't completely understand. Loki was not one to toy with. He had inflicted both pain and misery to all those whose lives he'd touched, so who was to say that this would be any different? How could Loki be so profoundly changed just by meeting her daughter?

Which led her to another train of thought. If all of this supposed "soul mate" speculation were to be considered fact, wouldn't it have a profound impact on Rose if Loki were to be banished? According to Loki, soul mates shared each other's pains as well as each other's triumphs. They shared communication telepathically, and were basically two parts of one soul. If all this was true, then Rose, too, would suffer greatly. Perhaps not physically, but emotionally for sure.

Jane sighed deeply and harrowingly while massaging her temples. Which was worse? Unjustly condemning her daughter's soul mate to a life of solitude, or condemning her own daughter to misery?

...

Rosalie's eyelids fluttered open as the light of the dawn reflected off the walls of her chambers to her rosy cheeks, warming her skin in such a comforting caress. As the blurriness in her vision subsided, she became aware of another presence in her room, sitting patiently at her bedside. "Sif?" she rasped uncertainly.

"Good morning, princess," the female warrior smiled sweetly at the young strawberry blonde. "Did you sleep well?"

Rosalie eyed her godmother uncertainly, as she slowly sat up in her bed, wiping away any unwanted sleep from her eyes. "I suppose," Rose replied cagily with a small shrug. "But I'm confused as to why you are still here."

"I thought that we might spend the day together. With all the chaos that's transpired recently, I figured you were due for a day of relaxation and freedom," Sif answered, affectionately stroking curly blonde locks of fine hair away from the princess's face.

Rose frowned at Sif's answer, easily detecting the subtle hints of deception in her voice. "So my father asked you to do this," Rose spoke with dripping bitterness. "He's trying to keep me away from Loki."

A very brief and subtle grimace flashed across Sif's features before she forced it away. Rose had never been so blunt with her. However, Sif quickly concluded that such behavior was the result of the young girl spending so much time with the Traitor of Asgard, Loki. Sif stared Rose in the eyes, whose ocean blue orbs fiercely dared her to lie. With a sigh of resignation, Sif nodded feebly. "Your father did ask me to watch over you, Rosalie, but I would still be here even if he hadn't. I know the past week had been very difficult for you to cope with, and I only want for you to be happy. So, I'm willing to take you anywhere today. We can go anywhere and do anything you desire. You've been confined to your room for a long time. Surely there is something that appeals to you."

Rose listened intensely to Sif's genuine concern for her well being. While her father and mother had not been very honest with her as of recently, Sif had never lied to her. Sif could perhaps be the princess's only true ally throughout this whole ordeal. Perhaps, if given the time and motivation, Rose could convince her godmother to see things in the light that she did. Perhaps Sif could, with proper convincing, come around to see that Loki meant Rosalie no harm, and that the pair truly did care about each other. A day together in that regard didn't ring so poorly in Rosalie's ears. It was a full day to bond with her Godmother, as well as plant seeds that hinted to the girl's distress and the truth her current predicament here and there along the way. It was a long shot, but young Princess Rosalie had few other options.

"I haven't seen Genevieve in ages," Rose admitted sorrowfully.

"Then we shall go riding!" Sif confirmed enthusiastically and without a second thought. "Now, why don't I help you find something to wear? It has indeed been ages since the Asgardians have seen their princess."

...

Genevieve trotted idly through a market close to the outskirts of Asgard. Rose admired the early morning light still not at its brightest from atop her prized steed. Sif trailed close by, but allowed the princess some privacy and time to think by slinking back a few paces upon her jet black horse. As they were nearing the gates to the Bifrost, a thought occurred to Rose.

"Sif?" she called over her shoulder. The female warrior was there in an instant, her horse galloping for a brief moment to catch up to Genevieve's trot.

"Yes princess?"

"I have an idea..."

"Which is..?" Sif played along to the princess's mischievous playfulness, quite relieved that she seemed to be calm and enjoying herself.

Rosalie pursed her lips, feigning delving into deep thought before she grinned widely and happily in frolic. "Race you to the Bifrost!" she exclaimed.

Sif's smile wiped cleanly from her face and was instantly replaced with a pale, color drained look of horror as Rosalie took off towards the gate with uncontrollable giggles. "Wait! Rosalie! Stop!" Sif screamed, racing after the young princess as quickly as she could. Rosalie, however, didn't seem to hear Sif's pleas and cries, demanding her to cease her trek to the Bifrost.

Sif's blood ran cold as her horse sprinted after Rosalie's. However, no matter how quickly she seemed to be traveling, Rose looked only to be growing farther away. The female warrior felt adrenaline coarse through her veins in steady heaps. She silently sent out a prayer to whatever deity that kept watch over Asgard, pleading and desperately hoping that Loki's banishment had come to a close. However, the nagging voice in the back of her frantic mind annoyingly assured her that this would not be the case. Nothing was never that simple, was it?

...

Once Rose had passed the gates of Asgard's kingdom limits, she had been completely awestruck by the sight before her. The bridge that led to the Bifrost paired with the background of the vast universe always had such an effect on her, leaving her nearly breathless at its beauty. The roaring waves of the ocean beneath her made her shiver in delight as Genevieve sprinted forth, making the princess feel as if she was a gallant warrior like her Godmother, Sif. Invincible, strong and fearless.

Rose studied the bridge beneath her in fascination as her horse's hooves upon the flooring of the bridge initiated a rippling change of color that swept behind them like a trail of a luminescent, magical rainbow. The rainbow bridge was very long, but the journey went by swiftly as Rose took in each and every one of her surroundings. It was at times such as this that Rosalie truly appreciated the beauty of Asgard. She doubted she'd ever want to live any place else.

However, all thoughts praising her beloved home ceased abruptly when Rose caught sight of a gathering of her father's army's horses sitting outside the entrance to the Bifrost. Rosalie's brows furrowed in curiosity, while she pondered the possibilities of what was taking place within the gold dome perched precariously on the edge of the Asgardian realm. Whatever it was, it had to be something of grave importance. There were far too many horses settled outside to suggest otherwise. Then, the young princess's attention was drawn by both her mother and father's horses standing at the head of the rest, sending up a series of red flags and alerts in the small child's mind. What were they doing here? The only time so many people, including the king and queen, were summoned to the Bifrost was for a formal banishment.

"Banishment," Rose whispered quietly to herself as she pulled at Genevieve's reigns to bring her to a smooth halt. Who could possibly have warranted such a sentence? Banishment was never taken lightly in Asgard. In fact, it had been years since a banishment had occurred. Rose certainly hadn't heard her father or mother speaking of one to occur in the near future. And typically, they allowed their daughter to know of such information, for there would come a day that she herself would run the kingdom. But this time they hadn't. Unless...

Rose's eyes widened and her skin paled in such fear, agony and anger that she suddenly felt weak. "Oh no..." she found herself gasping. Rose sprang into action, practically leaping from Genevieve's back to reach the ground with a loud thud. Rosalie had barely taken two steps when a firm grasp on her forearm stopped her from going a step farther. Rose turned to pry herself from the restricting grip, but met the eyes of a panting, anxious Sif.

"Rosalie, you can't go in there," Sif spoke with no room for argument.

"But I must!" Rose protested, struggling to release herself in vain, tears beginning to stream down her face.

"Your father forbids it, princess," Sif felt her heart break at Rose's obvious distress, though she couldn't exactly pinpoint what she was so flustered about. Rose didn't know what was taking place...

"This is why you were told to spend the day with me, isn't it?" Rose cried in despair. "It was to keep me out of the way. Father didn't want me intervening in Loki's banishment."

These words alone caused Sif to release the princess and visibly recoil as if she had been slapped. "What... Rose... How did you...?" Sif was unable to form a coherent thought as the young strawberry blonde's face contorted into something Sif had never seen don the girl's features. A disgusted, leering sneer.

"I'm not as useless as I'm made out to be, Sif," Rose hissed, her blue eyes flashing dangerously. "You and I both know that this is what's occurring. Do you dare deny it?"

Sif found herself unable to answer the princess.

...

Thor stood before Loki, who was chained and bound by magically enhanced shackles that prohibited him from using magic, utterly defenseless and powerless. It was with a heavy heart that Thor sentenced Loki to banishment. He just couldn't risk the fallen prince to hurt his daughter. No matter how genuine the God of Mischief seemed, Thor couldn't bring himself to trust his former brother. Not now, not ever. Many a times had Thor given Loki chances to change. Chances to see the error in his ways. Chances to redeem himself. Every time, he was answered with a physical brawl or well thought out plot to overcome the golden child of Asgard. As much as it broke Thor's heart to admit it, Loki would never change.

A tiny vial tucked tightly in his hands shook as Thor's nerves quaked through his body, though his resolve did not waver. The vial contained a dosage of magic that would both strip Loki of his powers permanently, as well as wipe his memories of Asgard and ever being the God of Mischief. As drastic as it seemed, Thor couldn't and wouldn't risk Loki ever regaining access to Asgard. The only way to ensure this never happening was to erase every ounce of Loki's knowledge of it ever existing. Of any of this ever existing. Thor feared his daughter's reaction to what he was about to do, but he could not risk losing his beloved child to the man who had made his life utter hell for so long, and he hoped with every fiber of his being that Rosalie would come to forgive him in time, eventually seeing reason, eventually understanding as she came of age.

"Loki," Thor sighed, staring at the man before him with sorrowful eyes. "You are here today because your actions have been deemed hazardous to this kingdom. And it is with a heavy heart that I banish you from Asgard."

Loki scoffed and rolled his eyes at Thor's word choice. It was the first reaction the king had seen him make in the past twenty four hours, for Loki had succumbed to an eerie state of calm and acceptance after their drabble in the dungeons. But the traitor of Asgard offered no jarring statements or comments. His jaw only locked as he held his tongue and refrained from lashing out.

"In addition to banishment," Thor continued, looking to Jane who stood at his side, looking quite uncertain and wary, "your memories and magical abilities will be stripped from you. This will be done to prevent you from ever returning to Asgard." Thor took a moment to gaze around at all those present in the golden dome of the Bifrost, including many of the royal warriors and Heimdall, there as witnesses to the banishment. Thor then turned his attention back to his brother and lowered his voice considerably.

"I truly am sorry for this, Loki," he whispered brokenly, the remnants of love for his brother emerging through his words. "But I have no other choice. Perhaps with this banishment, your suffering will end as well."

Loki chuckled hollowly at the sentiment. "Do hold your breath on that one," he sneered aggressively.

Thor frowned and sighed deeply, closing his eyes. "You will never change..." he murmured to no one but himself. "Heimdall," he addressed the gatekeeper more loudly, eyes never leaving Loki. "Open the Bifrost."

Heimdall bowed his head in obedience and made to open the gate to another realm. However, just as he was readying to do so, a heart wrenching cry reached the ears of all, causing them to turn to the entrance of the golden dome.

"NO!" Thor turned to see his daughter frantic and yelling, her golden hair flying wildly behind her as she rushed forward. "Do not do this, Father, please! I beg you!"

To say that Thor, Jane and Loki were shocked to see the princess was a vast understatement. For a moment, they were all shocked into a dumbfounded silence. Both Thor's and Loki's chests clenched painfully upon hearing the clear pain and suffering of Rose's pleading voice. Tears rose unbidden to Rosalie's eyes, spilling from her ocean eyes fiercely as she continued to plead with her father.

Thor recovered from her arrival more quickly than the others, and answered her pleas."I am so sorry for this, Rose, but it is for your own good," Thor told her calmly, though he could not help the few tears that slipped from his own eyes.

"Do not patronize her, Thor," Loki spat at the king from the binds of his chains. "If you wish to punish me, then do so, but do not pretend that this is for anything but your own selfish desire to rid yourself and your daughter of my presence." Thor simply shook his head, though part of him could not help but feel the bits of truth in Loki's statement, which only made his shame grow more and his chest clench painfully again.

Sif strode quickly around the bend with a panicked look strewn across her face. "I am so sorry Thor. She managed to escape my grasp. I didn't mean for her to come here." Sif then quickly approached the princess and wrapped her arms around her goddaughter once more. Jane placed a hand on Thor's shoulder as the two shared a saddened look while she nodded.

_Why didn't you tell me?!_ Rose's voice carried into Loki's mind through the pair's telepathic connection.

_I didn't want to worry you,_ Loki admitted truthfully. _Because there is nothing you could have done that would make the outcome any different._

_At least I could have tried, Loki!_ Rose's voice carried over in something on the verge of a scream that made Loki's heart ache.

_And you would have tried wonderfully, darling. But when your father wants something, so it shall be done._

Thor stepped forward, uncorking the vial of the magical serum as he did so, the scent of dark magic filling the air. He did his best to drown out his daughter's screams from Sif's arms. Jane left her husband's side, and did her best to comfort her daughter in her distress, but it did little. Tears streamed down Thor's cheeks as he wrapped a hand around Loki's chin. He truly was sorry for what he was about to do, but for some reason, he simply could not stop himself. So, he simply continued the mantra in his head that this was only for his daughter, only for Rose's protection, though he wondered if he would ever believe it again once this was done, once Rosalie's anger tore her further from her father's grasp. He shook his head to clear the thoughts from his mind and looked into Loki's emerald eyes as he pulled upon the fallen prince's jaw to open his mouth just enough to slip the edge of the vial's opening between thin lips.

Loki called out to Rosalie telepathically as he felt and tasted the teal liquid spill into his mouth. _Rose, calm your heart. Do not be frightened, my darling_. As the cursed potion slipped down his throat, Loki could already feel its effects, and so he uttered his final words to his beloved princess before his mind wiped to a clean slate, though he could not believe the very words that were about to escape him. _We will find each other, again, Rose. This, I promise you, and please, darling, know that I love you._

And with that, Loki was gone. He blinked slowly like an owl, taking in his surroundings in confusion. His eyes met Rose's from across the room, who was still crying out and reaching for him only to be restrained by those that cared about her. The sorcerer's brows furrowed in concern at the small girl's distress, and it was in this moment that Rose realized that he didn't recognize her. He stared right through her.

Rose felt as if her heart had been carved out of her chest with a wooden spoon and sliced into jagged chunks. Her Loki didn't recognize her. He didn't recognize anyone or anything. His eyes darted about the room in puzzled fear and confusion. Never once was a connection made. His memories had been erased.

"What did you do?!" Rose screeched accusingly at her father.

Thor closed his eyes and ignored his daughter's cries. "Heimdall, now," he commanded sharply. Not a moment more passed before Loki's chains fell to the floor accompanied by a series of loud, echoing clanks with a wave of the gatekeeper's hand. And before another word could be spoken, Heimdall opened a passage that quickly sucked a dazed Loki away from Asgard with a rumbling strike. A look of sheer panic donned Loki's features before he was swept away, gone for good.

_Loki...? _Rose called frantically to no answer. _Loki, please! If you can here me, please answer! _There was no response. Only silence. Rose screamed from her mother's arms. Oh how she screamed. She didn't care that half of her father's army was witnessing her meltdown, nor did she care that it was poor showing. All she knew was that her beloved was gone.

Thor dismissed his guards in a rush, then turned to face his daughter who had screamed until her voice had practically given out and was still struggling against her mother and Sif's grasp. Once the final guard had exited the Bifrost, Jane and Sif finally let go of the strawberry blonde child, who leapt away from them, her crystal eyes flashing furiously behind a glossy sheen, her fair cheeks so like her mother's tracked and marred by her endless tears. When she calmed herself enough to speak, her voice came out in a ragged and cracked whisper, though her tone was resolute.

"How could you have done this to him, Father? To me?"

"Rose, I know you are angry, but with time"

"But I shall not always be, Father. I may not be of age, but I will be one day, and Loki is my future, whether you of approve of the fact or not. You have taken my future from me. There is no greater betrayal. You and Mother, everyone in our Kingdom, you all speak of Loki's evils, and yet you lower yourselves to lies and cruelty and even dark magic to punish him. Tell me, Father, how that makes any of you better than he? People are not simply black or white. There are shades of gray that cannot and should not be overlooked."

Both Thor and Jane bowed their heads in shame, the truth of their daughter's words and her ever-shocking maturity stinging them like nothing ever had.

"I will never forgive you for this," Rose spoke, turning her back on the pair and Sif to retreat from the Bifrost. All eyed after the princess as she left the golden dome with an eerily confident stride. Once she was outside, an idea occurred to her. Giving the king and queen one final, chilling glare, she turned her attention to the roaring waves of water beneath the rainbow bridge of the Bifrost. Before either of her parents could stop her, Rose closed her eyes and lept off the bridge to submerge herself to the raging waters below, making sure to never emerge from its grasp as she disappeared, envisioning traveling as far from Asgard as she could manage.

_**A/N: I know. You all are going to kill me. Fire off below in the review box to tell me what an awful person I am. **_


	20. Chapter 20

_"This is the end. Pretend that you want it; don't react."_

_-Losing Your Memory : Ryan Star_

A pale, sallow, thin arm emerged from the roaring waves of the ocean and laced its fingers securely around a large, protruding rock along a massive wall of stone. Moments later, a soaked, matted mob of strawberry blonde curls emerged out of the surface of the ocean. A loud, long gasp followed by a series of high pitched coughs echoed off the stone wall, despite the raging ferocity of the ocean's waves. Rosalie forced herself out of the water, every one of her muscles straining and crying out in protest. Her drenched clothing hung heavily on her small frame, weighing her down as she stood up on the jagged rock. Her knees buckled for a brief moment, and Rose almost fell back into the water, but her coordination and stability served her well as she steadied herself.

Rosalie blinked rapidly to clear the water from her eyes, inspecting her surroundings. Rose was far away from whence she came, now lingering in the very outskirts and dark, shadowed edges of Asgard. She silently wondered how long she had been at the mercy of the rough water, for it had seemed as though for hours. In fact, Rosalie was quite surprised that she was conscious and alive. The ocean had flung, tugged and hurled her about. Many a times had Rose found herself inhaling the salty water, and her throat was now dry and raw from the constant irritation.

With a ragged breath, Rosalie forced herself to coherently think. A higher power must have had mercy on her, for not far off, along the large wall of stone, was an opening of what belonged to a secluded cave. Without so much as a second thought, Rosalie made that said cave her destination, leaping from rock to rock, keeping an impressive steady balance as she neared the cave entrance. Once she crossed the threshold of the cave entrance, she instantly took note of the drastic difference in temperature. It was freezing. So cold to the extent that the young princess's arms ignited in goosebumps only moments upon her arrival. Yet, even so, Rose could care less. Quite frankly, she didn't mind the chill. It took her mind off of what had come to pass less than an hour prior. Loki was gone...

At this thought alone, the princess felt her eyes fill with moisture and tears. Her face paled and her whole body shook as the weight of her circumstance pummeled into her like a bolt of lightening. Loki was gone. Not only was he gone, but his memories too had been wiped. Lost. There was a very likely chance that Rose would never see him again...

Rosalie collapsed onto the cold, hard, stone floor in a heap, convulsing in a fit of tears, cries, screams and gut wrenching sobs. She was unable to stop. It was as if a piece of her very soul was missing. Her very heart, mind, body and soul were ripping apart. She felt ill, her stomach churning in queasy, nauseous, repulsion. Rose was incomplete without Loki. She couldn't bear the thought of never seeing him again. The future seemed dim from where Rosalie stood.

Once Rose had composed herself to the point of coherent thought, she went to work on creating a small fire to warm her damp, porcelain skin. Because she'd done it so often in the past, Rose didn't even have to think twice as she flicked her wrist to ignite a strong, steady flame before her. The heat of the flame brought instant gratification to Rose's feeble form, but did little to warm the cold, empty void in the young princess's heart.

The last thing she wanted to do was return home. The thought of even facing her parents disgusted Rosalie. They were dead to her. Such a betrayal as they had committed was so hurtful and selfish that the young princess didn't want anything to do with the King and Queen of Asgard. She couldn't and wouldn't ever trust them again. As such, Rosalie had to get out of Asgard... But how? She wouldn't be able to use the Bifrost, for Heimdall kept the passageway under lock and key. He was sworn to obey the monarchs of the realm. Thor and Jane wouldn't be too keen on their daughter transcending realms, so that left passage through the Bifrost out.

The thought of Heimdall suddenly made Rose feel apprehensive and anxious. The gatekeeper could see all. With this in mind, it would only be a matter of time before a search party descended and retrieved Rosalie, only to force her back to the kingdom of which she now loathed. Without the sorcerer she had grown to love so reverently, nothing would ever succumb to Rose's liking. In fact, the princess wanted her parents to suffer for their actions. If she were to disappear, somehow clouded from Heimdall's vision, this would be the ultimate punishment. But how was Rose to achieve this with little to no time to concoct a grand scheming plan?

The young princess sighed a ragged breath, and closed her eyes, silently calling forth all information she knew of transcending realms in search of something useful. In all her studies, there had to be something she'd learned that would aid her in leaving Asgard undetected. Rosalie grinded her teeth while she pondered the options. There were very few to mull over, but she found herself referring to a conversation she'd held with the one and only God of Mischief almost a year prior.

_"Loki?" Rose asked while idly flipping through an index of all things magical. The pair had been reading in silence for nearly an hour, just reveling in each other's company._

_"Yes, darling?" Loki responded almost immediately, marking the place in his book, for he knew that Rosalie was about to ask a question that didn't have a simple answer. The sorcerer smirked lightly upon thinking that the two had grown so close that they practically knew what the other was thinking even without using their telepathic communication._

_"How did you do it?"_

_"Do what?"_

_"Transcend realms without Heimdall ever tracing your steps," Rosalie spoke with a certain fascination and curiosity, her pooling ocean blue eyes sparkling endearingly. "And clouding his vision from ever seeing what you were doing. You were invisible! How did you do it?"_

_Loki pursed his lips and sighed, closing his book to fully address the princess's question. "Unlike what all past, present and future monarchs of Asgard prefer for everyone to believe, there is not just one passageway available to transcend realms."_

_Rose's brows furrowed as she processed this information, mind churning. "But what father says–"_

_"Is, regrettably, irrelevant and so far from the truth, princess," Loki interjected before Rose could voice her concern._

_"So... He's lied to me?" Rose hid her frown well, but not well enough to go undetected by Loki. He knew her too well._

_"Not exactly," Loki's head tilted slightly out of concern for the princess's mental health. Mistrust in her own parents was in no way a positive direction in which to turn. "It is only but beneficial to Asgard if everyone believes that the only way in and out of the realm is through the Bifrost."_

_"If that's not the case," Rosalie's nose scrunched in distaste, her thoughts still lingering on the deception her father and the past kings of Asgard had created to the common resident, "Then begs the question; how were you able to leave Asgard undetected?"_

_"There are passages that not many know of," Loki replied cagily. "Portals on the very outskirts of Asgard within some of the caves by the ocean."_

_Rose's eyes widened, for this was news to her. Never had she even fathomed the possibility of accessible portals existing other than the Bifrost. "Did you create these portals?" she asked._

_Loki chuckled at the young princess's excitement. "No, I didn't. You think too highly of my abilities. I may be powerful, but not even I have the capability to create a portal such as those. I imagine they've been there for centuries."_

_"What makes those portals so different from the rest?" Rosalie inquired further, absorbing the sorcerer's knowledge like a sponge. "Other than the fact that they can transcend realms," she clarified upon seeing Loki smirk teasingly at the strawberry blonde._

_Loki's smirk didn't waver as he chuckled lightly at the young girl's exuberance. "Why does it matter, Rose?"_

_Rosalie shrugged with a shy smile of her own. "I want to know," she replied simply. "All of the books I have ever read do not even mention portals other than the Bifrost."_

_"I suppose they wouldn't," Loki sighed with a growing sense of irritation. "It is considered dark magic, after all. If the mere existence of such magic is repulsive to most, the thought that it could be useful is unthinkable."_

_The ignorance of such an advanced race had ceased to astound Loki long ago. Prior to his intricate involvement with dark magic, Loki too had once been one to avoid any mention of the destructive sorcery his peers and elders detested. Initially, he had agreed with them. Magic was something to frown upon. Pure white magic was rarely accepted, only tolerated, but dark black magic was never even spoken of. It was practically non-existent. That is, until Loki himself had brought the hidden secrets of the_ _ancient art of dark sorcery to light. That was why Loki was so well known. He'd been the first cunning and daring enough to work dark magic to his benefit. This landed him the title of the "God of Mischief," which also ultimately gave him the name of what more people knew him by... The traitor of Asgard._

_"So, there are portals that lead to other lands," Rosalie's sweet voice brought Loki out of his thoughts. "But that doesn't explain why Heimdall was unable to see what you were doing on the other side."_

_Loki grinned mischievously. "Another benefit to these portals is that once someone crosses one, it protects that person from being spied on by anyone, including the gatekeeper himself. It clouds his vision so that if he so chooses to turn his eye on you, he will be unable to detect where you are, what you're doing or who you're with."_

_Rose gasped in awe, her mouth opened into a perfectly shaped 'o' at this revelation. "That's it?" she asked almost in confusion. "That's how you did it?"_

_"Why so surprised, princess?" Loki asked, his deep green eyes tracing every feature of Rosalie's face._

_"I always thought the way you were able to escape Heimdall's guard was a little more intricate. That's all," the young princess shrugged._

_At this Loki laughed wholeheartedly at the girl's statement. "Again, you think too highly of my abilities," he spoke, remnants of laughter still pulling at the corners of his drawl mouth._

_"Or perhaps you don't think highly enough of your own abilities," Rose quipped with a serious tone that softened Loki's gaze on the girl. The intensity in which they studied each other was immense. Again, Loki was astounded by Rosalie's continual devotion to him, despite his flaws and wrongdoings. It made no sense that an intelligent, genuine, caring and beautiful girl such as Rose would befriend a lying, deceitful, trickster such as himself._

_Loki smiled sweetly at Rosalie, his gaze oozing such tender care and love that Rose was sure that any look her parents ever gave her could never compare to this. "Perhaps not," he admitted barely above a whisper._

Rosalie drew herself out of the memory with dread. Even thinking of Loki was painful beyond belief. But the memory did prove to contain vital information that could aid Rose in escape.

"A portal," Rose murmured to herself, a chill running down her spine. That's what she needed to find before her father's calvary arrived to haul her home to keep her a prisoner for the rest of her life. Loki had said that some of the caves on the outskirts of Asgard contained these portals. Was Rose so lucky as to come across one and be in it at this very moment?

At this thought alone, Rose instantly became aware of a presence of a faint source of power coming from deep within the cave. The vibrations it sent out ran through her body, bringing about a satisfying tingle that eased her mind and calmed her nerves. How had she not noticed this sensation before? Was Rosalie so consumed in sorrow that she was unable to sense the thick, unmistakable taste of magic in the air? It was calling her. Urging her. Inviting her. _Thank gods..._

With a deep breath and not so much as a thought, Rose stood shakily and crept slowly into the heart of the cave. Little by little, step by step, the young princess lurked deep into the cave's center, the light of the flame she had created growing dim behind her. While darkness consumed her, the vibrations and concentration of magic grew stronger and thicker, urging her onward.

When Rosalie found the portal, as she was determined to do, there was no turning back. Nothing in her desired to see any part of Asgard ever again, including her parents, the reigning King and Queen of the realm. Without Loki, she was incomplete. To live a life without him was unthinkable. To live a life with the ones who ripped him from her was unbearable. Rosalie refused to do it. She refused to ever set foot in the place she'd once considered home ever again.

Rosalie continued to walk, now submerged in complete darkness, the frequency of magical vibrations pulsating through her body in waves. She was getting close. She could feel it. However, as she neared the end of the line, one final thought occurred to her.

Loki was condemned to a live devoid of memories and any sort of relations to Rose or even those he once considered family. He was alone. Rose couldn't shake away the feeling that if she too were to transcend realms, it would only be fair if she was deprived of her memories as well. Rosalie's soulmate was suffering. It didn't seem right that she was not to share in his suffering if they were two parts to one whole. Perhaps if Rose crossed the portal, she would be bestowed the same fate as her true love. In addition to such noble notions, there were also selfish motivations behind this train of thought. All Rose wanted to do was forget. Forget about her parents' betrayal. Forget about the pain. Forget about her home. Forget about everything. Nothing mattered anymore. Life was now devoid of all joy. Life oblivious to the horrors that had recently transpired was much more preferable to the knowledge Rose was forced to endure. Ignorance. Ignorance was bliss.

These were Rose's final thoughts before she came in contact with a portal that shocked her skin with sharp electric currents. Rose jumped back, momentarily faltered by the pain that ignited in her veins. But ultimately, the young blonde would not be deterred from her mission. So with a determined frown and a brave step forward, Rosalie allowed the pain to enter her body, and disappeared through the portal, hoping and praying that one day, she could forget the life she was leaving behind.

_**A/N: Sorry for the wait! I didn't really proofread this so sorry if it has a bunch of errors. I hope my lack of updating doesn't contribute to a loss of interest. This chapter was more of a transition than anything, for the story is about to take a HUGE turn. I hope you all will stick around to see it through! THANK YOU for the awesome reviews, comments, follows, favorites, etc... It really does mean a lot! Until next time! (P.S. The quote from the beginning is in the song listed in case you're curious.) **_


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